This video is part of a series of tutorials for Luminos, Astronomy
for iOS. If you're new to Luminos, consider watching the videos on
Exploring the Interface and Detail Views and Actions first.
In this tutorial, we'll look in more detail at the Solar System.
To start, we'll access the orrery view of the Solar System from the Browser.
Tapping 'View from Space' will give you a distant view of all the planets.
You can pan around the view or zoom in and out with a pinch gesture.
Planets and moons will show their orbit paths if they are visible, but not too close.
For fun, speed up the time control to one day per second to watch the relative
speeds of the orbiting planets.
OK, let's return home.
Back to the Solar System Browser.
Notice that all icons will show as faded if that planet or moon is not visible from
your current location and time.
If an object IS visible, it's location will be summarized in the menu.
If it is NOT visible, the approximate time until it rises will be shown.
Selecting any planet or moon brings up the Detail View.
Each planet, moon, and dwarf planet has pages with descriptive articles and
interesting characteristics,
and links to any moons.
See the Detail Views and Actions video for tips on using it.
We'll highlight a few of the specific planet and moon actions now.
Two common Actions for planets, moons, and Dwarf Planets are 'Zoom in'
and 'View from space'.
'Zoom in' keeps your current position, but centers and focuses the camera on the planet or moon.
'View from space' launches you into orbit around that target.
While viewing from space, you can rotate the object
by dragging across its surface.
Want to know what the view would be like under the rings of Saturn?
If you land on the surface of a planet, you can see a new perspective on stargazing.
If you're already viewing a planet or moon from space, landing on the surface
will put you under the spot from which you are viewing.
If you land directly from somewhere else, a central location will be chosen automatically.
As an experiment, let's compare how fast some of Jupiter's moons orbit that planet.
We'll use the three finger elevation drag to gain a bit of distance, then speed up
the time control to one hour per second.
Notice how quickly the closer moons, like Metis, orbit around Jupiter.
Pulling up the Detail View on Metis confirms that it has a very short orbit time.
There's lots more to find in the Solar System. Get out there and start exploring!
