Long before GPS, explorers used the stars to cross oceans and deserts. Here’s how they turned the night sky into a map.

Polynesian navigators used the stars to sail across the ocean, Disney’s ‘Moana’ movies help those of us who have never sailed at night to understand the methods of celestial navigation.

Disney’s ‘Moana’ movies have brought a new level of excitement for astronomy and wayfinding, says an astronomer who regularly hosts planetarium shows.

NEW YORK (AP) — An Australian moth follows the stars during its yearly migration, using the night sky as a guiding compass, according to a new study. When temperatures heat up, nocturnal Bogong moths ...

We know there are several birds, seals, and frogs that navigate using stars. Birds such as Indigo buntings rely on the rotation of different constellations to figure out which way is south.

Bogong moths are brown, nondescript creatures—but scientists now suggest they are the first known invertebrates to use the stars for navigation.© Ajay Narendra (Macquarie University, Australia) ...

Birds routinely navigate by starlight, but the moths are the first known invertebrates, or creatures without a backbone, to find their way across such long distances using the stars.

Astronomers and navigators can measure latitude using the height of the stars, which Maui and Moana did in the movie using their hands as measuring tools.