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Aim your phone’s top edge along the polar axis. Move the dot to the crosshair; left and right represent counterclockwise and clockwise azimuth.
North marker unavailable
Start the compass and allow location to find the pole.
Green: within 1° · Amber: within 5° · Orange: farther away. Sensor estimate only, not a precision polar alignment. Verify under the stars.
Optional surface calibration +
Place the phone screen-up on a level surface, resting on the same case or camera bump you will use against the mount. Keep it still, then calibrate. This corrects the surface angle for polar alignment only; it does not calibrate the compass.
No surface calibration applied.
Point the top edge. Aim it along your mount’s polar axis. You can tilt the phone; the bearing is its direction projected onto the horizontal plane.
Give it some space. Metal, magnets and electronics can throw off your compass. Calibrate with a figure-eight motion.
Fine-tune under the stars. This is a starting point, not a precision polar alignment. Set your mount’s altitude to your latitude, then use a polar scope or star-based alignment.
Online polar alignment assistant for telescope mounts
Northstar helps you roughly polar align an equatorial telescope mount using your phone's compass, orientation sensors, and location. The polar alignment aid estimates the direction of the north or south celestial pole, including when Polaris is hidden.
Phone sensors and nearby metal can affect accuracy. Use a polar scope, plate solving, or another star-based method for precise alignment.