Can anyone recommend a lunar atlas? I'm currently using the Moon phase maps from Astrovisuals but am looking for something a bit more detailed.
One caveat: I'm not very good at mentally flipping charts upside down or left to right so I really want something that will show me the moon as I see it through the eyepiece. The Astrovisuals maps came in electronic format as well as hard copy and the electronic copies covered all four possible orientations (i.e. north up/down, each with left/right view). I copied these files to my Android tablet and can easily select the one I need depending on the scope or binos I'm using.
Virtual Moon Atlas is my ultimate resource. Can be configured not only to what ever view your scope gives, but also the level of detail, libration, date, scale, you name it, it's there. Notes not just the typical features, craters, riles, etc, but also pyroclastic flows & domes (volcanos) - something very few atlas do.
Free download too.
Below is a screen shots of the craters Posidonius & Alphonsus. The Numbers correspond to volcanic domes and/or pyroclastic deposits.
On my phone I carry the app "LunarMap HD". Also very good, but a step below Virtual Moon Atlas. The low res app is free, the higher res app has a small fee.
Out in the field I start with the app for gross nomenclature, and then refine my info with the laptop.
I would recommend the Sky At Night Collectors Edition of Sir Patrick Moore's Guide To The Moon, it's a chunky magazine like format with reams of useful info, pics etc etc. It appears at my local newsagency from time to time.
I also use an iphone app called Moon Globe, it's a freebie and i'm reasonably sure there is an android version.
It looks dated, but I still have my copy of the Hatfield Photographic Atlas, which I use regularly. I agree the Sky at Night special is worth picking up. A book that I recently bought and now use regularly is What's Hot On The Moon Tonight. No detailed maps, but it does really make you think about what you are looking at.
I just downloaded Virtual Lunar Atlas on my Mac and it's very good. Only problem is my Mac is a desktop and I'd prefer something I can have either on my lap or beside the scope, which means a book or something on my tablet (Android).
If you are after a book, the Hamlyn Atlas of the Moon by Antonin Rukl is a nice gridded style of maps plus information about features and their size.
Ted
It looks dated, but I still have my copy of the Hatfield Photographic Atlas, which I use regularly. I agree the Sky at Night special is worth picking up. A book that I recently bought and now use regularly is What's Hot On The Moon Tonight. No detailed maps, but it does really make you think about what you are looking at.
I just bought What's Hot... on Kindle and it seems quite good.
One thing I've noticed with some of the available books, especially the older ones, is that the images are in 'naked eye' orientation, which is no good when you're looking through a scope with a star diagonal.
Virtual Moon Atlas is my ultimate resource. Can be configured not only to what ever view your scope gives, but also the level of detail, libration, date, scale, you name it, it's there. Notes not just the typical features, craters, riles, etc, but also pyroclastic flows & domes (volcanos) - something very few atlas do.
Free download too.
Below is a screen shots of the craters Posidonius & Alphonsus. The Numbers correspond to volcanic domes and/or pyroclastic deposits.
On my phone I carry the app "LunarMap HD". Also very good, but a step below Virtual Moon Atlas. The low res app is free, the higher res app has a small fee.
Out in the field I start with the app for gross nomenclature, and then refine my info with the laptop.
Hey Alex,
I downloaded Virtual Moon Atlas from the link you posted. The program looks almost the same as Virtual Lunar Atlas but not as good, perhaps an earlier version. The one I downloaded was here https://ap-i.net/avl/en/download Just posting for the benefit of anyone else that might want to try it.
I've borrowed an old laptop so my lunar atlas solution is now:
- Virtual Lunar Atlas on my laptop & desktop
- Astrovisuals moon map on my tablet
- Lunar Map HD on my phone & tablet
- The book 'What's Hot on the Moon Tonight?' on my phone & tablet*
* This book is excellent. It doesn't have very detailed charts but it has lots of suggestions on features to look for, as well as explanations of how the features were formed. It's great to browse through when you have a bit of spare time, like on the bus. I bought it through the Amazon Kindle app.
Hamlyn Atlas of the Moon by Antonin Rukl gets my vote for a book. Great map charts and photos of some main attractions. I jagged one at the January 2016 Brisbane Lifeline Bookfest for $2.50.
I'll throw in another free reference that some may be interested in. A photographic atlas compiled by Hong Kong amateur Alan Chu. See here and it is a 124mb download:
