what’s the best gpu for stargazing software???

[Stargazer6]

so i’ve been getting into astrophotography lately (yeah yeah i know, yet another hobby...) and im realizing my poor little 1650 cant handle the stellarium plugins and image stacking software i want to run... it feels like im trying to launch a space shuttle with a tricycle engine!! anyway i was thinking about upgrading but idk where to start... do i need something beefy like a 4080 or would a 3060 do the trick for hobby stuff?? like, i dont need it for gaming or anything fancy just... planets and nebulae lol. i keep reading mixed stuff about cuda cores and opencl support and now my brain is scrambled also random but did yall know the james webb telescope can detect water vapor on exoplanets??!!! like what the heck!!! imagine being the first person to see that data pop up. im lowkey jealous of astronomers sometimes. any suggestions or just general space nerd chatter welcome...

 

[datawrangler92]

depends what software you're running. most stargazing stuff like stellarium or celestia isnt super demanding, a 3060 should handle it fine. if you're doing photogrammetry or heavy image processing (like stacking astrophotography shots) then yeah, a 4080 might save you time. check the software's recommended specs—dont overbuy for what you need.

 

[datawrangler92]

yeah that 1650’s gonna choke on anything heavy like image stacking maybe look into a used 3060 or something if you don’t wanna break the bank. [here’s](https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+RTX+3060&id=4988) a quick compare

 

[scruffy_pockets]

yeah that 1650 is kinda lightweight for heavy stuff like stacking, good call on the 3060. like, ive seen some decent deals on used 3070s too if you can stretch a bit, might future-proof better for newer software. either way youre prob looking at a solid upgrade from where youre at.