light years

the light left when you were born

Enter a name and birthday. Meet the star that sent your light.

Names and dates stay in this browser.

A sample card, for someone born on 15 June 1990. Yours uses your own date.

starlight is old

  1. what it is

    Starlight is old. A star 30 light-years away shows you light that left it 30 years ago. We find a star that matches your age.

  2. how it works

    We compare your exact age with distances in the HYG star catalogue and pick a visible star to match. A star with a name wins if it is within about a light-year.

  3. the price

    The card, preview and share image are free. Print files with no mark, in four styles, cost $9, once.

a card for the wall

$9 digital print card

  • A4 and A3 at 300 dpi, plus 4 by 5, as PNG
  • A print-ready PDF
  • No mark, all four styles, a line of your own

Checkout is by Dodo Payments, which handles cards, tax and receipts. Your license key arrives by email.

questions

How accurate is it?

The star is real and the maths is exact. The distance is a catalogue estimate and may be off by a few percent, so “the month you were born” can be a few months out. The card says when it is.

What do I get for $9?

High-resolution files with no mark: A4 and A3 at 300 dpi and 4 by 5, as PNG, plus a PDF. You also get all four styles and a line of your own.

Can I get a refund?

You can preview the whole card free before buying, so we don’t refund a change of mind. If a file won’t open or print, or your key doesn’t work, email us within 14 days. We fix it, or refund you in full if we can’t. See the refund policy.

What happens to my data?

The card is drawn on your device. We run no database and no tracking. Only a license key is ever sent to us, to check it with Dodo Payments.

Are names and birthdays stored?

Only in your browser, if at all. Share links keep them in the part of the address after the #, which browsers never send to any server.