Apps ≫ Deep Sky Finder

This VR planetarium app assists with stargazing by overlaying a star chart onto real scenery using Quest 3's passthrough feature. Unlike standard apps requiring mental translation to the actual sky, this app overlays celestial positions directly onto your view, letting you intuitively check your target's direction and altitude.

Upon launch, stars, Messier objects, planets, the Moon, and the Sun appear. First, face actual north and hold the Meta button to reset Quest's forward direction. This aligns the real sky with the VR chart, an essential step for accurate tracking.

Bright stars show names, and Messier objects display M-numbers. Overlapping the chart with real scenery like buildings and trees makes it easy to see if targets are above the horizon or hidden by obstacles—ideal for urban stargazing.

The status panel displays the local date/time, coordinates, UTC offset, and a WiFi location button. Coordinates can be fetched via WiFi or edited manually. Saved coordinates persist for your next session.

Adjust local time via the UTC offset (+540 mins for Japan, 0 for UTC, -300 for EST, -480 for PST) to ensure a precise simulation of your local sky.

Click near an M-number with the right controller beam to view its image, name, azimuth, and altitude. Clicking elsewhere shows the azimuth/altitude of that point and nearby bright NGC candidates. If an NGC object matches a Messier object, it displays both (e.g., NGC0224(M031)).

Perfect for both beginners and amateur astronomers.