Explore a 3D globe of the Moon
Moon Atlas is an astronomy application that lets you use pinch and finger gestures to manipulate a 3D globe of the Moon. This is a rendered sphere and not a static map image. As you zoom in more labels appear as finer detail comes into view. You can double tap on the labels to get more information about a particular feature.
Moon Atlas displays the phase and libration of the Moon from your chosen location and renders these on the globe. You can switch to a 'Globe' mode that allows you to spin the Moon around to see far side features. The feature database is searchable and can move the globe to a searched feature. The phase can be switched off and the far side is shown in a slightly darker shade of grey.
Date, time and location can be changed. There is also a realtime mode that will update to the current time.
The Moon globe can be shown with north or south at the top or inverted to suit different telescope views.
Over 1800 named features are included as well as 26 spacecraft that reached the surface of the Moon.
In addition, information about the current Moon phase and libration are provided. You can swipe left and right on the phase view to go backwards and forwards a day and on the libration chart to go backwards and forwards a month.
Mars, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn atlases are also available on the App Store!
Also there is Planisphere, a star charting app, available on the App Store!
If you fancy trying to land on the Moon, try Apollo Eagle, a simulation of the last 50,000 feet of the Apollo 11 landing.
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Screenshots
Moon Atlas FAQ
Is Moon Atlas free?
Moon Atlas is not free (it costs 6.99), however it doesn't contain in-app purchases or subscriptions.
Is Moon Atlas legit?
🤔 The Moon Atlas app's quality is mixed. Some users are satisfied, while others report issues. Consider reading individual reviews for more context.
This app contains many hundreds of lunar features utilizing a dynamic zoom labeling relationship. I find the map very clear and easy to use.
The app also makes use of current libration mapping for time of observation. I highly recommend this app.
Everyone Will Enjoy This Atlas!
Everyone can enjoy all of these atlases as works of art as well as reliable references. They are easy to use and fill the needs of astronomers of all ages. They are well worth the modest fee. It’s an investment in program improvements, and hopefully the creation of atlases for other planets.
Very featureful, but low rez images makes this useless with telescope
Pros:
+ Takes into account libration and viewers position
+ Dynamic labeling based on zoom (clearest labeling I’ve seen among apps!)
+ Provides extra data (including libration plot), not just the map itself!
+ Has upside-down & mirror mode, and night vision (red) mode.
+ Full 3D globe if you want or explore from other angles.
+ All imagery has a good (though static) lighting angle such that terrain relief is clear.
Cons:
+ This turned out to be a BIG one for me: Lowest resolution imagery or any of the moon maps. When out observing with my small (130mm) reflector Telescope, I can clearly see much smaller details than shown in this image. Indeed, the in app chart is such low resolution that I had a hard time identifying craters because identifying details were missing. I ditched for another app that, while worse at showing labels, gave me the detail necessary to identify features accurately.
AWSOME
don't understand why the "update" isn't available
Missing important feature
This is a good app for what it does, but for astronomers it’s missing a very important feature: There is no way to set the calendar for a specific date and time and read what the current day is in 10ths of a day, e.g., 9.2 days old. It would also be helpful to know the longitude of the terminator.
Nice but not great
Interesting features and detailed information about the moon.
Some missing items though. The moon is not shown in its real position, turning clockwise during at the sky.
It would also be nice to include eclipse effects on the moon.
Otherwise nice program in addition to a planetarium.
No Better
This app is not any better or offer any other features that free apps for lunar observation. Disappointed. Would like a search option that would not "transport" you there, just show it on the map. Also a tap feature to identify something would be nice rather than having to zoom in to try to find a label.
Love this app - Highly recommended
Moon Atlas is a handy app that does exactly what it is supposed to do - show you lunar details on a 3D Moon. I use this app on my iPhone and iPad. I love it, especially when hosting a Moon Party for friends and family. A note to the developers... one enhancement I would like to see is the ability to save screen shots as graphic files.
Excellent lunar app
The addition of colongitude makes this the first app to my knowledge to provide this important info. THANKS! I do a lot of lunar observing and find this to be a handy and useful iPhone app. I no longer feel compelled to haul out an atlas or notebook. Worth the money.
Colongitude
Great addition of colongitude in latest version. Important information for observing.
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