Light as old as you
Find your birthday star
Light takes one year to travel one light year. So a star about 35 light years away is showing us light that left it about 35 years ago. Enter a birth date and place: the “Birthday light” list shows real stars at about that distance that can be seen from there. The map shows the sky on the night of the birth.
Your star
4Preview your keepsake
The real download has no PREVIEW marks and is full size (A4 or US Letter, 300 dpi), with a second page that shows how to find the star.
Download only: nothing is printed or posted. You pay on Stripe’s secure page; any sales tax or VAT is shown there before you pay. Refunds: 30 days, no questions asked. Other people can pick the same star, because no one can own a star or its name.
How the birthday light list works
We take the years since the date you enter and look for stars whose distance in light years is close to that number, within about 10%. The distances come from the Bright Star Catalogue’s parallax measurements: the tiny shift of a star as the Earth goes round the Sun. Older measurements can be a few years off, so we always say “about”.
The list only shows stars that rise well above the horizon from the place you chose, so you can go out and see the star on a clear night.
Under ten years old?
The nearest star we can offer is about 11 light years away (the closest stars of all already have IAU names). For a young child, choose “High overhead” instead: a star that was right above them on the night they were born.
Questions about birthday stars
What is a birthday star?
Here it means a star whose light set out about when someone was born. Light travels one light year every year, so a star about 40 light years away shows us light that left it about 40 years ago.
How exact is it?
Within a few years. The distances come from older measurements in the Bright Star Catalogue, so we say "about". For a child under ten, no star we can offer is close enough; choose a star high in the sky on their birthday instead.
Is a birthday star the same as a zodiac sign?
No. This is about real distances and real light, not astrology. Your star can be in any constellation.
Will astronomers use the name I choose?
No. Only the International Astronomical Union (IAU) gives stars the names astronomers use, and it does not sell them. What you get here is a keepsake: a real star, the name you choose for it, and the facts to find it. We say this on every page and on the keepsake itself.
Can I see my star?
Every star we offer can be seen without a telescope from a dark place. The brighter ones are easy even from a town. The keepsake comes with a card that says which month and time to look, which way to face and how high up it is.