This page provides a result prefilled with the place and coordinates. The calculations and phone gyroscope work without an order; the HD poster remains optional. See the Columbus constellation table
A latitude-based guide with transit altitude, season and circumpolar status
Not every constellation rises from every latitude. This guide compares the representative declination of well-known constellations with the latitude of Columbus. It shows which patterns can clear a practical horizon, how high they culminate and which northern or southern groups stay circumpolar.
From Columbus, latitude decides how high each familiar pattern can climb above an ideal horizon. Its verifiable starting point is GeoNames 4509177, 39.9612° N, 82.9988° W, in timezone America/New_York.
Each entry below gives an approximate maximum altitude at meridian transit and a practical season; an asterisk means circumpolar in this simplified centroid model: Ursa Major: 74.0°, all year *; Cassiopeia: 70.0°, all year *; Draco: 65.0°, all year *; Cepheus: 60.0°, all year *; Ursa Minor: 53.0°, all year *; Cygnus: 90.0°, summer; Auriga: 88.0°, winter; Andromeda: 88.0°, autumn; Lyra: 86.0°, summer; Perseus: 85.0°, winter; Boötes: 80.0°, spring; Gemini: 72.0°, winter; Taurus: 68.0°, winter; Leo: 65.0°, spring. This is a planning guide, not a promise that every star will be visible from a bright street. Date, hour, local obstructions and light pollution still matter. The live sky tool performs the date-specific projection that a static latitude table cannot.
Calculation identity: GeoNames 4509177 · city Columbus · region Ohio · country United States · national selection rank 14 · reference population 913,175 · source elevation 235 m. Spatial fingerprint: latitude 39.96118 · longitude -82.99879 · north hemisphere · timezone America/New_York · celestial-pole altitude 40.0°. Seasonal signature: longest night in December, 14 h 49 · shortest night in June, 9 h 11 · range 5.64 hours. Meridian star markers: Ursa Major 74.0° * · Cassiopeia 70.0° * · Draco 65.0° * · Cepheus 60.0° * · Ursa Minor 53.0° * · Cygnus 90.0°. Nearby catalogue cities: Cincinnati 160 km · Toledo 195 km · Cleveland 203 km. First regional eclipse shortlist: 2027-02-20 Penumbral lunar eclipse 23:14 UTC · 2027-08-17 Penumbral lunar eclipse 07:14 UTC · 2028-01-12 Partial lunar eclipse 04:14 UTC. Together these values form the local evidence record for the “constellations” page; they change with place and remain separate from real weather.
1. Columbus → Cincinnati: 159.7 km · Δlat -0.834° · Δlon -1.516° · Δpole -0.9° · timezone America/New_York = America/New_York · longest night December 14 h 44 | 2. Columbus → Toledo: 195.0 km · Δlat +1.703° · Δlon -0.556° · Δpole +1.7° · timezone America/New_York = America/New_York · longest night December 15 h 01 | 3. Columbus → Cleveland: 203.3 km · Δlat +1.538° · Δlon +1.303° · Δpole +1.5° · timezone America/New_York = America/New_York · longest night December 14 h 59. Monthly night comparison with the nearest catalogue reference — January: Columbus 14 h 32 / Cincinnati 14 h 28 / Δ +0.08 h · February: Columbus 13 h 31 / Cincinnati 13 h 29 / Δ +0.04 h · March: Columbus 12 h 19 / Cincinnati 12 h 19 / Δ +0.01 h · April: Columbus 10 h 56 / Cincinnati 10 h 58 / Δ -0.03 h · May: Columbus 9 h 47 / Cincinnati 9 h 52 / Δ -0.07 h · June: Columbus 9 h 11 / Cincinnati 9 h 16 / Δ -0.09 h · July: Columbus 9 h 26 / Cincinnati 9 h 31 / Δ -0.08 h · August: Columbus 10 h 25 / Cincinnati 10 h 28 / Δ -0.05 h · September: Columbus 11 h 45 / Cincinnati 11 h 46 / Δ -0.01 h · October: Columbus 13 h 05 / Cincinnati 13 h 03 / Δ +0.04 h · November: Columbus 14 h 15 / Cincinnati 14 h 11 / Δ +0.06 h · December: Columbus 14 h 49 / Cincinnati 14 h 44 / Δ +0.08 h. For constellation screening, latitude difference becomes a meridian-altitude difference; a small change is reported as small rather than exaggerated for local copy.
Columbus is represented by 39.9612° N, 82.9988° W, in Ohio, using the IANA zone America/New_York. This is a mid-latitude viewpoint: the relevant celestial pole stands about 40.0° above its horizon. GeoNames record 4509177 supplies the geographic reference; its population field is 913,175 and is used for catalogue selection, not presented as a live census. The source elevation is 235 metres; terrain can hide a low object even when the geometric calculation says it rises.
The following pairs are approximate daylight / night duration around the 15th of each month: January: 9 h 28 / 14 h 32; February: 10 h 29 / 13 h 31; March: 11 h 41 / 12 h 19; April: 13 h 04 / 10 h 56; May: 14 h 13 / 9 h 47; June: 14 h 49 / 9 h 11; July: 14 h 34 / 9 h 26; August: 13 h 35 / 10 h 25; September: 12 h 15 / 11 h 45; October: 10 h 55 / 13 h 05; November: 9 h 45 / 14 h 15; December: 9 h 11 / 14 h 49. The longest estimated night in this model is December at 14 h 49; the shortest is June at 9 h 11. “Night” here is the complement of daylight on a flat horizon. Civil, nautical and astronomical twilight are not interchangeable, and weather is not predicted by this table.
Coordinates, date and local time feed the same astronomical workflow used by the poster. The HYG catalogue provides star entries, while Astronomy Engine calculates moving bodies. The page does not claim that city-centre coordinates equal a hospital, venue or home: selecting an autocomplete suggestion replaces the shortcut with that location. It also separates astronomical geometry from weather and light pollution, so a correct map never becomes a claim that the ground-level sky was cloudless.
On a compatible phone, the gyroscope turns the calculated sky into a movable window: tilt and rotate to explore, with star names shown beside key points. That experience is free. If a date deserves a keepsake, the same place can continue into the editor. The protected preview remains watermarked before payment; the €3.99 purchase unlocks the 4960 × 7016 px, 300 DPI file. Physical formats appear only when availability, delivery supplement and timing can be checked for the destination. Checkout is in euros; the card issuer shows the current conversion to US dollars (USD).
It removes patterns that only graze an ideal horizon. 20 catalogue groups pass that screen here, but local hills and buildings can require a higher threshold.
Yes. Choose the intended autocomplete suggestion; its coordinates replace the city shortcut. Unselected free text is never silently sent to a default city.
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No. The calculations describe geometry. Cloud, terrain, buildings and light pollution can change what a person sees from the ground.
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See the Columbus constellation table
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