Solar Position / Sunrise Sunset calculator.

Hi,

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

There is a commercial program called SunPath, but he's just starting out
and is broke and can't afford it.

Is there something free? Maybe a Java application since Java runs on
Apple's OS.

I know there are many web pages which will do the calculations but he
doesn't want to be dependent on web access.

Many thanks,

MS

If he doesn't want to be tied to a computer most any hand held GPS will
give him local sunrise & sunset - or - for any location he wishes.

JJS

MS wrote:
Hi,

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

There is a commercial program called SunPath, but he's just starting out
and is broke and can't afford it.

Is there something free? Maybe a Java application since Java runs on
Apple's OS.

I know there are many web pages which will do the calculations but he
doesn't want to be dependent on web access.

Many thanks,

MS

Thanks but he doesn't have a GPS and I think they'd be more expensive than
the software.

MS

No-One emailed this:
If he doesn't want to be tied to a computer most any hand held GPS will
give him local sunrise & sunset - or - for any location he wishes.

JJS

MS wrote:

Hi,

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone
+ daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

There is a commercial program called SunPath, but he's just starting
out and is broke and can't afford it.

Is there something free? Maybe a Java application since Java runs on
Apple's OS.

I know there are many web pages which will do the calculations but he
doesn't want to be dependent on web access.

Many thanks,

MS

MS wrote:

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

I don't know of anything which does /just/ that, but any decent star
chart package should be able to give you that information. There's a
list of Mac astro software here, including some free stuff:

http://www.pure-mac.com/astronomy.html


Tim
--
You are being watched. This gives you power.

Many Thanks Tim.

Tim Auton emailed this:
MS wrote:

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.


I don't know of anything which does /just/ that, but any decent star
chart package should be able to give you that information. There's a
list of Mac astro software here, including some free stuff:

http://www.pure-mac.com/astronomy.html


Tim

MS wrote in news:XHTXe.111980
:

Hi,

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

There is a commercial program called SunPath, but he's just starting out
and is broke and can't afford it.

Is there something free? Maybe a Java application since Java runs on
Apple's OS.

I know there are many web pages which will do the calculations but he
doesn't want to be dependent on web access.

Many thanks,

MS

Any planetarium program will do that. If it was for a PC then I would
suggest Cartes Du Ceil which is a freeware skycharting program:

http://www.stargazing.net/astropc/

For Mac OSX I am only aware of commercial programs like Starry Night. I
suggest trying your question on sci.astro.amateur

Klazmon.

MS wrote:

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.


I think SunGraph will do most of what he wants, quite prettily, and
it's free:

http://www.analemma.com/SunGraph/index.html.

It doesn't give figures for the sun's position, but from the rise,
set, twilight, or transit times -- and the graphic displays -- it
isn't too hard to make a fair estimate for any given moment.

While you're at it, have a look at the Analemma pages on the same
site (there's a link at the bottom of the SunGraph page); it's a very
nicely presented explanation of the Equation of Time and related matters.

--
Odysseus

In uk.sci.astronomy MS wrote:
Hi,

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

Shouldn't be too hard to do on a calculator:

The angle between the southern meridian and sunset/sunrise on a flat
horizon is given by:

Cosine (angle) = minus Tangent (Latitude) multiplied by Tangent
(Declination of Sun)

So what you need is some tables of the Sun's declination for the year
and you can get the angle. Then you need the difference between Noon and
the Sun's transit of the southern meridian at your longitude, which can
be calculated from the longitudinal difference from your location and
the longitudinal meridian for your time zone. I have vague memories that
you may need to apply an Equation of Time correction (someone here will
probably know?) and so you may need EoT tables. Don't forget to correct
for British Summer Time too...

FoFP

Many, many thanks, it is perfect!

One question, what's EOT?

EG. The display looks like this:
Sunrise 0610
Sunset 1831
Transit 1220
EOT 6:48 min:sec

Cheers,

MS

Odysseus emailed this:
MS wrote:

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.



I think SunGraph will do most of what he wants, quite prettily, and
it's free:

http://www.analemma.com/SunGraph/index.html.

It doesn't give figures for the sun's position, but from the rise,
set, twilight, or transit times -- and the graphic displays -- it
isn't too hard to make a fair estimate for any given moment.

While you're at it, have a look at the Analemma pages on the same
site (there's a link at the bottom of the SunGraph page); it's a very
nicely presented explanation of the Equation of Time and related matters.

Thanks.

Llanzlan Klazmon emailed this:
MS wrote in news:XHTXe.111980
:


Hi,

My brother is a cinematographer and needs a Solar Position and Sunrise
Sunset calculator for his Apple computer. You enter long/lat, timezone +
daylight savings, altitude, etc. and it gives you the figures.

There is a commercial program called SunPath, but he's just starting out
and is broke and can't afford it.

Is there something free? Maybe a Java application since Java runs on
Apple's OS.

I know there are many web pages which will do the calculations but he
doesn't want to be dependent on web access.

Many thanks,

MS


Any planetarium program will do that. If it was for a PC then I would
suggest Cartes Du Ceil which is a freeware skycharting program:

http://www.stargazing.net/astropc/

For Mac OSX I am only aware of commercial programs like Starry Night. I
suggest trying your question on sci.astro.amateur

Klazmon.