About Starshelf
A stargazing journal for observers who'd rather log a session than fight a spreadsheet.
Amateur astronomers who track what they've observed tend to end up keeping a paper logbook or fighting a spreadsheet. Neither one checks itself off as you go, and neither one turns quiet, private progress into something you can hold onto.
Starshelf exists to be the record that does: sky conditions, object logs, and gear tracking, with built-in catalogs that check themselves off as you log — and a printable certificate the moment you cross a milestone, without a single observation ever leaving your device.
What we believe
Everything runs on your device
No backend, no account, no sync service. Every screen, including certificate generation and export, works in airplane mode.
Works with no signal
Take it to a dark-sky site with zero bars — session logging, catalog checklists, and PDF export all work offline.
Your data belongs to you
No analytics, no telemetry, no ad SDKs. One tap in Settings deletes everything, permanently, whenever you want.
One codebase, both stores
iOS and Android from a single build, so the app looks and feels native and correct at every size, phone to tablet, light and dark.
Certificates, not claims
Achievement Certificates are original to Starshelf — a tangible payoff for your own logged progress, not a submission to, or award from, any outside observing program.
Who it's for
Backyard visual observers, beginners working through their first catalog, and more experienced observers chipping away at planets and double stars between clear nights — anyone who wants a record better than a phone note or a spreadsheet, with catalogs and gear math built in.
Built by Beacon Light Investments
Starshelf is developed and maintained by Beacon Light Investments. Have a question or a feature you'd like to see? Get in touch.