A planisphere is a simple device that shows you where the constellations are, in your night sky, for any time/date combination. (Due to the way the earth orbits the sun, a different portion of the night sky is visible during different times of the year).
You can purchase planisphere's but it is also fun and easy to make your own. First, you will need to select the correct hemisphere (northern or southern). Then, to be the most accurate, you will also need to know what latitude you are nearest. The middle of the U.S. (for example) is latitude 40° - the Kansas-Nebraska border.
Here are a couple of links to sites with printable planispheres and instructions for assembling them. You may find it handy to use them along with the Star Maps for Beginners book I recommended earlier:
- Planisphere 1 (40°, 45°, or 50° N)
- Planisphere 2 (wide range of latitudes, N or S)
- Planisphere 3 (40° to 50° N)
Planispheres are not only used by beginners, however. Even major observatories have them on hand, to assist in knowing what portion of the sky is visible at any given time and date.
If you are a Windows PC user, there is also a nifty program for creating and printing planispheres that works for a large range of latitudes (25-80 N or S !!!) It is also available with language translations for: French, Dutch, Italian, and Africkaans. (How cool is that?) Get it here: http://nio.astronomy.cz/om/.
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