DOWNLOAD FREE STAR CHARTS FOR NIGHT SKY EXPLORING

These charts help beginners recognise the major landmarks of the night sky and follow the motions of the bright planets.

There's also the monthly Sky Spotter update (below) which tells you what's visible for the current month, and the Sky Guide for a three-month overview of the planets and their positions. 

Click the month to download the pair of star charts – one looking east, the other west. Only the most prominent constellations are shown.

The star charts show two views of the night sky for each month. One view shows the western sky and the other shows the eastern sky. A small piece of the northern and southern sky is not shown so that we can show you a better scale for the charts.

Each chart will match the sky at the times given in the table on each page.

• To match the chart to the western sky, hold the western chart with the ‘WEST’ label aligned with west on your horizon. Be aware that hills, trees and buildings might block your view of objects near the horizon. Also, because of city lights and the absorbing effect of Earth’s atmosphere, objects nearer the horizon will generally appear fainter and redder – an effect we've all seen when watching the Sun or Moon set. 
  
  
• Locate the ‘OVERHEAD’ marker for each chart - this will help orientate your view of the sky. The other key marker is labelled ‘SCP’ – the South Celestial Pole. The whole sky seems to rotate around this point so objects close to the SCP will never set – they are called ‘circumpolar’.
  
  
• The elevation of the SCP above your horizon measures your latitude. These charts are made for Auckland's latitude (37° south). (From say, Invercargill, the SCP will appear nearly 10° higher in the south so more of the southern sky will be circumpolar from there). The Southern Cross never sets anywhere in Aotearoa so is perpetually in our skies, even though in the very north of the country it nearly touches the southern horizon.
  
  
• The thin blue line stretching across the charts is called the ‘ecliptic’. This marks the annual path of the Sun over the year and it is also the plane of the Solar System. The planets are always found along the ecliptic and are marked on the charts. By checking all the charts you can follow the motions of the planets against the stars over the year.
  
  
• The size of the stars on the charts indicates the approximate brightness of each star. This is also true for the naked eye planets, however, Uranus and Neptune are shown out of scale since they are too faint to see without binoculars or a telescope.
  
  
• Because the planets move against the stars over the course of the year, the positions shown for them is only exactly right for the ‘mid-month’ date. For example, on the ‘JANUARY – WEST’ chart, the positions of the planets are calculated for mid-January at 10pm. For Saturn and Jupiter that move slowly, their positions will stay similar to the chart. However, Mercury, Venus and Mars move quite quickly relative to the stars, so their positions on the charts can be different.  

Venus is easy to see in the evening twilight though is only briefly visible before setting. Dimmer Jupiter is extremely close to it before they set on the 2^nd. Part-way up the sky in the mid-evenings, orange Mars remains quite bright between north and northwest. The Moon visits Venus on the 24^th and Mars on the 28^th. In the closing days of March opportunities exist to spot Uranus with binoculars as Venus passes below.

Orion (the hunter) is the dominant constellation with its brightest star Rigel at top left and second brightest, orange Betelgeuse, at bottom right. Drifting from north to northwest as the evenings pass, Orion’s belt stars become increasingly vertical. They point down through Taurus (the bull) to Matariki, and up to the brightest star of the night sky, Sirius, of Canis Major (the big dog).

Partway up the sky, the Gemini twins Castor and Pollux can be found crossing the northern meridian east to west, as the evenings pass. Above them, Canis Minor’s two brightest stars, the most prominent named Procyon, lie at a similar angle. To the twins’ right, Leo (the lion) approaches from the northeast, the stars of his head resembling an inverted question mark or sickle. The brightest star in the sickle is Regulus. Meanwhile, the distorted quadrilateral of Corvus (the crow) stands out in the east. Below Corvus, bright Spica of Virgo (the maiden) is just rising.

Partway up the south-eastern sky, Crux (the southern cross) is on its side pointing back to Corvus. Canopus of Carina (the keel), the night’s second brightest star, is very high in the south, outshone only by Sirius further north. Together these stars drift lazily westward during March. The Milky Way threads its way through Crux towards the so-called ‘winter’ triangle in the northern sky, formed by Sirius, orange Betelgeuse, and Procyon.

Prior to sunrise, pale yellow Saturn becomes the brightest object low in the east, save for a beautiful crescent Moon that visits on the 20^th.

The nights are getting longer and cooler as we pass the autumn equinox. Orion, the dominant constellation of summer, is moving off the celestial stage, chased by the cooler but rich constellations of Scorpius and Sagittarius.

Canis Major and Orion / Tautoru

During March, early in the night, Canis Major (the great dog) and Orion (the hunter) are well placed for viewing and well-worth exploring with binoculars. High in the north there are three bright stars in a line. These stars make up the ‘Belt of Orion’ - also known to us in Aotearoa as Tautoru. They are one of the most distinctive landmarks of the night sky.

Sirius, Aldebaran, and Matariki

Extending the line of the belt stars upward and to the right you will find Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. Extend the line down and left from the belt and you will find the orange star, Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus. Continue that line further and you will find the beautiful Pleiades cluster, known to us in Aotearoa as Matariki.

By mid-April, Matariki is low in the northwest after sunset and is becoming more difficult to see. This year, be sure to watch over Easter weekend and the following days, as dazzling Venus passes just above the cluster. In May our line of sight is broken by the Sun and the glimmering stars of Matariki are lost from our view until June.

Orion Nebula

Back at Orion’s Belt, identify the bright stars Rigel (white) and Betelgeuse (reddish) which, in early autumn, are above left and below right of the belt, respectively. Those two bright stars, together with two slightly fainter ones enclose most of Orion with the belt being in the middle. A small line of fainter stars above and left of the belt marks Orion’s sword. One of these ‘stars’ is the magnificent Orion Nebula (M42), the closest massive star forming region to us. It is a stunning sight even in backyard telescopes.

Scorpius / Maui's fishhook 

In the south-eastern sky, Scorpius, also known as Maui’s fishhook, is seen rising around midnight in March. By the month of May, it will be rising in the early evening just as Orion is setting, Thus, Scorpius will become the dominant feature of our evening sky until spring. Further south, Crux, Carina and Centaurus are also major features of our autumn and winter skies.

Canopus / Atutahi

During March, Canopus of Carina is high overhead. Canopus, or Atutahi, was a key guide star used by the Polynesian voyagers and today it is used to guide interplanetary spacecraft. By May, Canopus will have moved to the southwest while Crux (the Southern Cross) will be high in the south-eastern sky. This is a very rich stellar region to explore with binoculars. So too is the densest region of the Milky Way, the galactic centre, seen rising with the scorpion’s tail late in autumn.

PLANETS VISIBLE WITH THE NAKED EYE DURING AUTUMN 2023

MERCURY

Absent for most of the season, Mercury becomes well-placed for early morning viewing from mid-May, just north of east. Much brighter Jupiter will reside above and to its left making Mercury easier to identify. A crescent Moon completes a triangle with the pair on the 18^th of May.

VENUS

Venus is the ‘evening star’ in autumn’s north-western sky. In March it sets during twilight then becomes more prominent as the season progresses. Over the Easter weekend and the days following it passes over beautiful Matariki. A crescent Moon is close-by on March 24^th and April 23^rd.

MARS

Mars remains quite bright in the north to north-western sky throughout autumn. The Moon is close-by on March 28^th. By the end of the season, although fading, it is still easily spotted setting west of northwest around 9pm.

JUPITER

On March 2^nd Jupiter is very close to brighter Venus low in the sky just north of west. Over the following days it is gathered into the Sun’s glare and lost from view. In late April Jupiter returns to the morning sky, soon becoming prominent just north of east.

SATURN

Saturn returns to the eastern sky in the mornings from early March. By the end of May it is high in the north as the sky brightens. Close passes of the Moon occur on March 20^th and May 14^th.