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Star maps Design yours

Star maps / The night we met

Star map of the night we met, over the spot where it happened

Give us the place you first talked, a bar or a bus stop is fine, and the date. We print the stars over that spot at about 9 that evening and name the brightest one high above you.

Print from $39, framed from $89. Free US shipping.

Design the night you met

You see the exact poster before you pay.

Navy star map in a black frame for Olivia and Sam, Washington Square Park, September 23, 2016, with Vega circled and named above a small street map

What is printed on it

The poster above is our "Our star" design in Navy, made for a couple who met in Washington Square Park on September 23, 2016.

  • The sky over the place you metEvery star brighter than magnitude 5.8, with constellation lines, as they stood at about 9 pm local sun time.
  • One star, circled and namedThe brightest named star at least 45 degrees up, with a line such as "Vega was shining right above us".
  • A small street mapThe streets around the spot, with a heart where you met.
  • Names, place and dateThe names in script, the place and the date beneath.
  • Six colorsCream, Sage, Blush, Navy, Noir or Clay. Two other designs wait in the editor.
Navy star map print, unframed: round night sky with Vega circled, the words Vega was shining right above us, a small round street map with a heart, the names Olivia and Sam, Washington Square Park, September 23, 2016
The same poster laid flat, without a frame. Vega sits just right of center.

Real example nights

The couples are made up; the skies are real, worked out for each place and date at about 9 pm.

Friday, September 23, 2016, Washington Square Park, New York

Say Olivia and Sam met at a friend's birthday drinks, then drifted over to the fountain when the bar got loud.

The named star is Vega, about 60 degrees up in the west. Deneb was higher, nearly overhead at 83 degrees, but Vega is brighter. Altair stood 53 degrees up in the southwest. The moon, a waning crescent 43 percent lit, had not yet risen.

Friday, March 14, 2014, Austin, Texas

Say you met at a bar off Sixth Street and were still talking when they turned the lights up.

Capella gets the circle, some 49 degrees high in the northwest. Sirius was brighter, though at 37 degrees it was too low to be named. A nearly full moon, 98 percent lit, hung about 53 degrees up in the southeast.

Saturday, October 3, 2009, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Say it was a dorm party early in the fall term. One of you came for a friend and stayed for the other.

Vega is named again here, 53 degrees above the western sky, with Deneb at 77 and Altair at 47. A full moon stood about 42 degrees high in the southeast.

Friday, February 14, 2020, Chicago, Illinois

Say neither of you had a Valentine's plan, and you got talking at a bus stop.

Capella, high in the northwest at about 75 degrees, is the one circled. Betelgeuse was 54 degrees up in the south. The moon, waning gibbous and 59 percent lit, was still below the eastern horizon.

If you are not sure of the exact date

Nobody signs a certificate the night they meet. Plenty of couples remember the bar and the song that was playing, then argue about the day. Here is where people find it:

If you are torn between two days, pick either one. At the same hour the stars shift by about one degree a night, because the sky turns a little faster than the sun, so a day or two off shows almost the same stars and usually the same named star. The moon changes nightly, but it is not on the poster.

For the place, type what you remember: the bar, the campus, a street corner, or only the city if that is all you know. The names line takes up to 40 characters, your two names or a short line such as "Where it started".

Sizes and prices

Each size and frame carries the same poster.

Frame12 × 16 in18 × 24 in24 × 32 in
Print only$39$49$69
Espresso and gold$139$179$279
Black and gold$139$179$259
Black$89$119$159
White$89$119$159
Oak$89$119$159
Espresso$99$129$169
Driftwood gray$129$169$269
Distressed brown and gold$109$149$229

Shipping is free in the US. Launch prices until Nov 30. You see the price of every size and frame in the editor before you pay.

The 12 × 16 suits a desk or a hallway. Over a bed or a sofa, go bigger.

Shipping, gifting and returns

Questions

We met in the afternoon. Can the poster show that hour?

No. Every poster shows the sky at about 9 in the evening, local sun time, which is 8:44 to 10:44 pm on the clock in the 11 US cities we checked, later in summer. You get the stars that came out over that place later the same day.

What if we only know the month?

Pick the date you think is closest. A few days either way gives almost the same sky and usually the same named star.

Is the moon on the poster?

No. It shows the stars, the named star, a small street map, your names, the place and the date.

The bar where we met has closed. What do I type?

Type the street address or the corner it stood on. Any address, park, venue, street or town in the world works.

Can I check the names and date before I pay?

Yes. The poster in the editor is the file we print, and you can open it full screen. If you spot a typo after ordering, write to studio@meridianplate.com right away and we fix it until it goes to print.

More star maps

Type the place and the night you met

Design the night you met