CONSTLE(ATION)

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An online game for identifying constellations

How to Play:

You have five guesses to name the constellation shown in the image. The game is currently in practice mode so you can play as many games as you'd like.

Some constellations have many bright stars, some constellations only contain dim stars. To the left is a legend that corresponds to the visual magnitude of the stars in the image. You can click the "+" and "-" buttons to change the brightness of the stars in the image.

Some constellations are quite large, some are relatively small. In some images, more than one constellation will be shown. The constellation you are trying to guess is centered in the middle of the image and its size spans most of width and/or height of the image.

If you make an incorrect guess, you will be told how far off (in degrees) the constellation you guessed is located, and the direction of that constellation from the center of the image.

Hints

The options (checkboxes) above the image allow you to get hints which may help in identifying the constellation.

Zoom Out

Quite often, it's easier to recognize a constellation by the stars and constellations that are nearby, rather than the stars in the constellation itself. You can zoom out to show more of the surrounding sky. Note that smaller constellations may be zoomed out more than larger constellations, and the very largest constellations may not be zoomed out at all.

Show Grid

This displays the equatorial grid of the sky. This grid allows you to see the celestial coordinates of the stars in the image, in right ascension and declination. Note that the ecliptic is also shown in green.

Show Boundaries

This shows the official boundaries of the constellations, as defined by the International Astronomical Union. The boundaries of the constellation you are trying to guess are shown in tan, and the boundaries of the other constellations are shown in brown.

Show Nearby Names

This shows the names of the nearby surrounding constellations.

Show Lines

This shows the imaginary lines that connect the stars in the constellation to make a "stick-figure" image that can help to identify the constellation.

Show Nearby Lines

This shows the imaginary lines that connect the stars of any nearby constellations.

Show Star Names

This shows the names of the bright stars in the constellation. Note that many stars do not have names.

Show Nearby Stars

This shows the names of any nearby bright stars that are not part of the constellation you are trying to guess.

Settings

Click the gear icon at the top of the page to change your personal settings.

The following settings can be used to limit which constellations will be shown to you and may affect how the constellations are displayed. Please note that these options are not yet working, but hopefully will be soon.

Location

You can choose to only view constellations visible from your latitude. Or you can choose to view all the constellations in the sky. If you get good at identifying constellations visible from your location, try changing your latitude to be closer to the equator; this will show you more constellations you might not be familiar with and make the game more challenging.

Visibility

Many constellations are not visible near city lights, so many of us rarely see the very dim constellations. To make the game easier, you can choose to only view constellations with stars that have a visible magnitude below a certain level. As you get better you can decrease this value to show dimmer constellations. (Remember that brighter stars have lower magnitudes.)

Rotation

You can choose to view the constellations with north always up, south always up, rotated randomly, or rotated an amount such as they might be visible from your location

These settings will be applied to the next constellation shown to you.

Your Location:

You can choose to view all the constellations in the sky. Or you can choose to only view constellations visible from your latitude. If you get good at identifying constellations visible from your location, try changing your latitude to be closer to the equator (closer to zero); this will show you more constellations you might not be familiar with and make the game more challenging.

Use geographic latitude: °

Visibility of Stars:

Many constellations are not visible near city lights, so many of us rarely see the very dim constellations. To make the game easier, you can choose to only view constellations with stars that have a visible magnitude brighter than a certain level. As you get better, you can change this value to show dimmer constellations. (Remember that brighter stars have lower magnitudes.)

Rotation:

You can choose to view the constellations with north always up, south always up, rotated randomly, or rotated an amount such as they might appear in the sky from your location.