Stars can be selected from the Catalogue of Stellar Identifications (CSI) 1979 edition, prepared by the ``Centre de Donnees astronomiques de Strasbourg" (CDS). This is a compilation of 434,927 stars, extracted from a wide range of original source catalogues. Approximate positions are available for each star, together with cross references into the original source catalogues. Magnitudes are available for most of the stars. Used in this mode, the program can act as a stellar data retrieval system to find, for example, which stars are (or are not) in a particular catalogue, or what information is known about the stars in a particular field. This is also the normal mode of use when preparing overlays or finding charts.
Preparing to Observe