講演情報
[PO2-26]Development and Educational Use of a Planisphere Application
*Katsuhiro Mouri1, Asami Nakashima2, Tomoyuki Sakaguchi3, Hiroshi Otake3, Daisaku Mochida2, Shuji Kobayashi2 (1. Graduate School of Science, Nagoya City University / Nagoya City Science Museum (Japan), 2. Nagoya City Science Museum (Japan), 3. IMAGE FACTORY CO.,LTD. (Japan))
キーワード：
Planisphere、Application、Education、Astronomy Education、smartphone、worldwide support、stargazing
We have been producing an original printed planisphere designed for the latitude and longitude of Nagoya since the Nagoya City Science Museum opened in 1962, and it has long been available through our museum shop. When we updated the planisphere in 2004, we also developed a digital version as a tool that can display large images on a screen to explain its use to large groups. The first version ran only on Windows XP, but it successfully reproduced the behavior of the printed planisphere on screen. We have permanently installed a dedicated PC in the planetarium for use during lectures and stargazing events.
Later, with the introduction of Adobe AIR, cross-platform development became possible, and we redesigned the application for general users. We now use Unity (Unity Technologies) as our development environment. The smartphone version supports both Android and iOS, and the PC version supports Windows and macOS.
To make the app easy to use on smartphones, we improved operability and automated many settings. The application automatically obtains the current time, latitude, longitude, and time zone, and adjusts the planisphere display accordingly. We achieved nationwide coverage across Japan in 2024, and we have since added worldwide longitude support and automatic switching to English labels. Because latitude differences require changes in both the planisphere star disk and horizon window, we support latitudes from 25°N to 45°N in steps of 5°. We also implemented features impossible with paper or plastic planispheres, such as displaying the Moon, planets, and the Sun.
In Japan, most people learn how to use a planisphere in elementary school science classes, so many users can operate the app intuitively. The digital version offers several advantages, including portability, automatic configuration, zooming, displaying the Moon and planets, and use during travel. By releasing this application free of charge, we hope to spread stargazing to more people.
Later, with the introduction of Adobe AIR, cross-platform development became possible, and we redesigned the application for general users. We now use Unity (Unity Technologies) as our development environment. The smartphone version supports both Android and iOS, and the PC version supports Windows and macOS.
To make the app easy to use on smartphones, we improved operability and automated many settings. The application automatically obtains the current time, latitude, longitude, and time zone, and adjusts the planisphere display accordingly. We achieved nationwide coverage across Japan in 2024, and we have since added worldwide longitude support and automatic switching to English labels. Because latitude differences require changes in both the planisphere star disk and horizon window, we support latitudes from 25°N to 45°N in steps of 5°. We also implemented features impossible with paper or plastic planispheres, such as displaying the Moon, planets, and the Sun.
In Japan, most people learn how to use a planisphere in elementary school science classes, so many users can operate the app intuitively. The digital version offers several advantages, including portability, automatic configuration, zooming, displaying the Moon and planets, and use during travel. By releasing this application free of charge, we hope to spread stargazing to more people.