MAFNET Planetarium
[The last renewal of this page: June 28, 2000]
To enabled to see this Planetarium, you need to download and install the
plug-in software "StellaPlayer" presented by Astro Arts Inc. at their
homepage linked below. After you've finished downloading, give a right
click on your mouse at "Start" button to start Explorer, and find the down
loaded file(Stlplay.exe) to give it a left click on your mouse to start
installer. Follow instructions, and complete the installation.
Download the STELLA PLAYER
The StellaPlayer is an engine to calculate and draw astronomical phenomena,
but is a plug-in software, and it never works alone. The Macro statements
(a kind of program) together with Visual Basic Script to enable interface
button and so on, being made by MAFNET, and linked below, control the plug
in software to calculate and draw the objects and Phenomena as it designed.
You can enjoy planetarium programs simply by clicking the programs you want
to see at below. The linked script will dirve your pug-in software to show
you the program as we designed.
(Attention!) If you use 800X600 pixels monitor, we strongly recommend you to
switch your browser to give you a full sized window. This will
be done by hittign F11 key for Microsoft Internet Explorer.
Another hit to F11 key will get you back to the normal window.
Skys in all over the World Now (Realtime)
Invite you to the sky in all directions at any point on the earth right
now. By clicking arrow keys, you can shift any object at the center
portion of the window to make the area you want to be Zoomed Up by
clicking Zoom button. If you want to see the sky at the place that is
not appear preset location button, you may adjust the locatioin directly
by clicking Latitude and Longitude button to set desired location in
these two figures looking at the current figures in the title-bar at the
top of the planetarium windoe. With this simulation, the Sun and all
Planets and the Moon are displayed. The window is refreshed en every
second, so you can follow the current sky with just leaving it after
starting the simulation.
Night Sky in every Month(09:00 PM on 15th)
Night sky for all directions at 09:00PM, on 15th day every month through
a year. You can bring the desired area to the center of the window tho
zoom it up to see details. the default locations is seet to the N35 in
latitude, but you may adjust it by clicking the lalitude and longitude
buttons set above the star window, looking at the current location being
displayed in the title bar at the top of the star window.
Simulation of Revolution of Planets of the Solar System (from present time to the given time in future)
This simulation plays a view of eight planets moving aroud the Sun at
the moment from now to the given time in future. Simulation speed is
valiable in hour step to year step. By adjusting a zoom function, you
can observe from inner planets to outer planets as you can see in one
view. The time of simulated moment is displayed at real time in the top
title bar.
Simulation of the waxing and waning of the Venus (from present time to the given time in future)
The Venus is one of the two inner planets, and it gets waxing and waning
like the Moon as it moves aroud the Sun, and changes the relative
position against the Sun as we see from the Earth. This simulation plays
the change of it phase. Simulation speed is varilble from 12 hour step
to 10 day step. As the movement of the Venus is just an appearance of
its relative position against the Sun, its movemnet is not smooth, but
it goes up and down a little bit, reflecting the difference of the
inclination angle of the orbit plane of the Venus and the Earth.
Simulation of teh movemnet of 4 satellites of the Jupiter (form present time to the given time in future)
The four largest satellites of the Jupiter are very easy to observe
with a small telescope. It moves very fast, and is a lot of fun to find
the changes of their positions everytime we take a look. This simulation
shows their revolutions. The name of each satellite are indicated, and
this could be a great help for your real observation with your telescope.
Simulation speed is variable from 10 minute step to 1day step.
The present time is displayed in the top title bar at real time.
Simulation of the waxing and waning of the Moon, and Eclipse of the Stars (from present time to the given time in future)
If you want to see only the phase of the Moon, you would better just
zoom it up till the Moon gets large enough in your screen. In the back-
gound, stars more than 8th magnitude, names of the star, Byer names,
magnitude, name of the constellation, lines of the constellation are
displayed. The movement of the Moon in the sky is slower than that of
other objects duu to its revolution, and the moon very frequently
eclipse the stars. This simulation also simulates exactly those star
eclipse. Set your latitude and longitude exactly by clicking their
adjusting buttons above the simulation window, monitoring the top bar,
where the given latitude and longitude are displayed. The present time
is also displayed in the top bar.
Simulation of the Solar eclipse (after 1999.8.11, in the begining of the 21st Century )
After the total eclipse on August 11, 1999 in Europe to Western Asia,
eclipses in all over the world in the beginning of the 21st century are
listed below to simulate. (Total eclipses and Annular eclipses)
The default observation location is set to the point where the eclipse
is observed for the longest time, but you can adjust their latitude and
longitude by clicking the adjusting buttons above the simulation window
monitoring the given latitude and longitude in the top bar of the window.
You can adjust the simulation speed in many steps, and you can also
adjust the size of the Sun. The present time is always displayed in the
top bar. At the moment of the largest eclipse, you can display a
beautiful view of corona or ring by zooming up the Sun with the "Enlarge
and Track" mode.
1999.08.11 Europe - West Asia (Total eclipse)
2001.06.21 Southern Africa (Total eclipse)
2002.12.04 Middle Africa - Indian Ocean (Total eclipse)
2003.11.23 South Pole (Total eclipse)
2006.03.29 Northern Africa - Central Asia (Total eclipse)
2008.08.01 Russia - China (Total eclipse)
2009.07.22 Pacific Ocean - amamioshima Id. - China (Total eclipse)
2012.05.20 Sothern coast of Japan (Annular eclipse)
2035.09.02 Japan (Total eclipse)

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