Built for deep-sky astrophotography

Plan your next clear night.

Deep Sky Spotter turns your location, sky conditions and equipment into clear, personalised target recommendations — so you spend less time planning and more time imaging.

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Designed for DSLR, mirrorless and dedicated astronomy cameras.

Deep Sky Spotter Planner showing recommended targets for a future night at Lake Tekapo — Pro Example observing session

See Deep Sky Spotter in action

From a promising target to a practical plan.

Discover targets in Planner, organise them in My Plan, then take your equipment and conditions into account. These captures show Pro with example observing data; some features are also included in Free.

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Planner

Choose your next observing night

Compare date-specific target scores for your location, Moon, sky brightness and equipment. Browse the six-day outlook before choosing a subject.

Full target library in Deep Sky Spotter with Pro access and example observing data

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Full target library Pro

Find a subject worth staying up for

Explore nebulae, galaxies, clusters and planets. Pro unlocks all 157 targets; Free includes 57. Search the catalog and sort by what matters to you.

Hourly conditions in Deep Sky Spotter with Pro access and example observing data

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Hourly conditions Pro

See how the night unfolds

Compare cloud cover, temperature, wind and Moon conditions. Pro adds hourly cloud and estimated optics-dew risk to help you prepare for changing conditions.

My Plan in Deep Sky Spotter with Pro access and example observing data

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My Plan Pro

Turn good targets into a session

Keep your selected targets together, plan up to seven nights with Pro, and work through a practical session checklist. Pro removes the three-target plan limit.

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Framing simulator

Explore your composition

Adjust focal length, sensor format and orientation to estimate how a target fits. Illustrative artwork and catalog size estimates provide a planning guide.

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Shooting guidance

Begin with useful starting points

Get target- and gear-aware exposure, gain and integration suggestions. Take test frames, check focus and adjust the recipe to your conditions.

Equipment profiles in Deep Sky Spotter with Pro access and example observing data

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Equipment profiles Pro

Plan around the gear you own

Set your focal-length range, camera, tracking mount and filters. Pro lets you save multiple equipment profiles and switch between setups.

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Imaging history

Remember what worked

Log captures and missed attempts with exposure settings, integration time, equipment snapshots and notes. Your journal stays on your device; export a backup to keep it safe.

Advanced filters in Deep Sky Spotter with Pro access and example observing data

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Advanced filters Pro

Narrow down the possibilities

Filter by target type, difficulty, score, viewing time, altitude, Moon impact, sky brightness and camera suitability. Find a subject that fits the session you have in mind.

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Target details

Understand the recommendation

See the best time, direction, altitude and suitability for your setup. The night timeline puts target altitude, Moon position and cloud cover into context.

Saved observing sites in Deep Sky Spotter with Pro access and example observing data

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Saved observing sites Pro

Move from home to dark skies

Use automatic location, search for a place or enter coordinates. Pro lets you keep multiple observing locations, each with its own sky-brightness setting.

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Finding your target

Know where to look

Get a compass direction, altitude and practical finding tips. Pointing Assist can use your phone as a rough sky guide; it is not precision telescope alignment.

Free and Pro

Start planning for free.

Both versions include location-aware scores, future visibility dates, the six-day forecast, a framing preview, Pointing Assist and an on-device imaging log.

Free

Explore 57 targets, including the planets. View all six forecast days and save up to three targets per session for the first three nights.

Deep Sky Spotter Pro

Unlock all 157 targets, advanced observing filters, detailed shooting guidance, hourly cloud and lens-dew estimates, seven-night session planning, unlimited plan targets, and multiple gear profiles and locations.

One score, the important context

Make the trade-offs obvious.

A target can be spectacular in theory and still be the wrong choice tonight. Deep Sky Spotter weighs the practical constraints for you, then shows the factors behind the result.

Choose your camera, focal length, tracking setup and filters.
Use automatic location, search for a place, or enter coordinates manually.
Compare ranked targets in Planner and save your choices in My Plan.
Use Pointing Assist as a rough guide when locating a target in the sky.

Deep Sky Spotter

Make your next clear night count.

App Store and Google Play download links will appear here when available.

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