Stellarium

What operating systems is it for - Windows, Linux, OSX, IOS, and Android

What does it do - Simulates the sky (day/night) given the date, time of day, and your longitude and latitude.

How much does it cost? - Free for Windows, Linux, and OSX. $2.49 for Android. $2.99 for IOS

Rating on the relevant app store as of date- 4.4 stars on Google Play

Audience - beginners or expert? student or pro? -This app can be for any user beginner or pro alike. The easy to use GUI has the important functions for beginners, and there are more advanced options for any experts

Would you recommend others in the class download it? - Yes, I would definitely recommend others in my class to download this app (the free version).

General Comments – This app is definitely worth it (the free version since I’m pretty cheap) for the beginning astronomer. I have used it countless times throughout the semester to help identify any star or general constellation for my observations. I have not used the mobile version but judging from the reviews of others it seems to function the same as the desktop version. Evaluate it - give marks for:

Ease of use- 4.5 stars: the majority of the controls are easy to use, but there are some more advanced functions that are for more advanced users.

Content accuracy- 5 stars: Stellarium is about as accurate as you can get with an open source application.

Cost (Value)- 5 stars: If you own a desktop its free! It can’t get any more cost effective than that. Is you **//need//** the mobile version then I would probably give it 4 stars (who really wants to pay for anything).

Relevancy to astronomy- 5 stars: Very relevant. I used it to locate constellations and the names of individual stars throughout the entire semester.

Interest- 5 stars. I loved this app. It was simple and easy to use, and it helped me become more aware of the night sky.