Camera Settings for iPhone Astronomy

Set your cell phone camera to capture celestial events and everynight wonders, including comets, Northern Lights, the Milky Way, satellites, lunar eclipses, and constellations. Below are the my brief steps for taking cell-estial photos with an IPhone in Night Mode.

Featured here are stars of Corona Borealis (the Northern Crown), site of an imminent nova. Watch the predictive nature of science unfold as a "new" star briefly shines about as bright as the star Polaris. With your cell phone you can confirm the nova T Coronae Borealis by imaging it before, during, and after its outburst.

Cell phone cameras reveal starfields previously ceded to the clouds.

How to Adjust Your iPhone Camera Settings

1. Start in Night Mode with the flash off and the default exposure setting at 3s. Tap the up arrow.

Default settings in low light: flash off, 3s yellow icon. Tap the up arrow...

2. With the arrow now down, tap the yellow moon icon below.

...so the arrow turns down. Among new row of icons on bottom, tap the yellow moon icon.

3. Scroll the bar to 10s exposure.

The Auto (3s) appears as default exposure time. Scroll the bar to 10 seconds.

4. Click button and hold still.

With exposure set to Max (10s), take picture. The shutter "clicks."

5. Keep crosshairs aligned.

Hold still. A white crosshair hovers over the center of the photo at the start of the exposure. If you stray, a second yellow crosshair shows how far off. Try to keep aligned.

6. Done!

After 10 seconds the shutter clicks again, and you've got your photo. Open in Photos and check that you've framed and captured your celestial target.

Objects in motion, like planes and satellites, will smear in long duration photos.

Three-second (3s) exposure yields many stars not seen by naked eye.

Ten-second (10s) exposure yields more stars, increasing brightness of stars and background light alike.

Use an app like SkyView to help find general location of constellation. Put central circle on a celestial target, which then enlarges, and its name and details appear bottom left.

While a cell phone image can be personally rewarding, the AAVSO invites other observers to "record this event for its scientific value." and describes "what to do during the eruption."