Android Apps and News

Google searches the web, and it apparently can track down a few things in the sky as well. A new Android app titled “Google Sky Map” can identify stars and distant plants, turning your Android device into a handy astronomy tool.

Google Sky Map uses GPS, clocks,and sensors, which are surprisingly accurate, to pinpoint the exact direction a phone faces. Google claims this allows the device to identify what celestial body a person is seeing. Point your G1 at the sky and the phone will say you’re looking at Saturn.

Sky Map is available in the Android Market (search for it by name). Lots of users commented that they get “force close” errors at launch, but it’s probably because they didn’t turn on GPS. Like many location-based apps in Android, GPS typically must be enabled before launching the app in order for it to work.

I doubt I’ll get much use out of this app, but this definitely wakes up my inner geek.

—

[Google Mobile]