P-Track guide & support
P-Track 1.1 guide. These instructions cover the latest TestFlight preview. P-Track is preparing for its public App Store launch.
Follow a station, plan a pass, and find your direction in the sky. Start with the optional welcome guide, or replay it from Settings whenever you want a refresher.
Start with ISS or Tiangong
- Open Satellites and choose Stations.
- Select ISS or Tiangong. Both are free, even when below your horizon.
- Drag to turn Earth and pinch to zoom. Open Flight details for altitude, speed, position and distance.
- Tap your location marker for location details. The marker hides when it is on Earth’s far side.
Track & notify
Open Track & notify and use the Pass notifications switch for the selected satellite. New basic reminders cover every overhead pass, including daylight and low passes, 15 minutes before predicted rise. If you subscribe inside that lead time, the app can queue an imminent reminder. ISS and Tiangong reminders at one editable saved place are free.
Turn the switch off to stop that satellite’s reminders at every saved location. Use Pass reminders in Observe for timing, saved places, detailed rules and a delivery test. Disabling reminders remains available after Pro expires.
A saved place is a fixed observing spot, not a moving location. Edit it when planning somewhere else. Open P-Track regularly to extend the finite local schedule. Check the app’s queued-alert status and iOS notification permissions, Focus, sound and Background App Refresh if delivery is missing. Weather never suppresses a pass reminder.
Overhead passes and visible passes
Next overhead pass means the next geometric pass above the horizon, including daylight. Next visible passes applies estimated viewing conditions and the filters shown in Observe. Open Viewing options to switch to all overhead passes or adjust the list’s filters.
A satellite above you may still be too faint, in Earth’s shadow, or difficult to see in bright skies. Optional cloud forecasts describe estimated sky conditions; buildings and local obstructions are not predicted. Some satellites have unknown brightness; GPS satellites are primarily educational, radio or telescope targets. Read the pass’s viewing explanation rather than treating elevation alone as a promise of visibility.
Pass times use your phone’s local time and say local. Technical UTC clocks say UTC. Countdown text and its nearby clock refer to the same instant. Custom reminder windows use the saved place’s selected time zone.
Sky View radar
Use Live mode, allow location access, and open Sky View. The radar lists supported satellites confirmed at or above your local horizon when current position data is available. Tap a row to add or remove it from the chart, or use Suggested and Clear chart. Pinch to zoom, drag when zoomed, and use Full sky to reset. A satellite card’s Sky finder button opens live direction guidance.
Tracking and Explore can show different selections. The app distinguishes missing data, unavailable location, playback, and satellites leaving view. If the radar is empty, read the explanation and return to Live mode when needed. Low passes are included from the horizon. Geometric visibility does not guarantee that a satellite is visible to the eye.
Sky Finder and the optional camera
Open Sky Finder from Track & notify, a Sky View satellite card, or Observe. The virtual sky works with the camera off. Move your phone to follow direction and tilt guidance; the crosshair represents where the phone is pointing.
- The ring marks the current satellite position.
- The solid trail shows the recent past, calculated from orbital data.
- The dashed trail and arrows show future predictions.
- Below-horizon trail sections are hidden. Missing samples remain gaps.
- Slow-moving satellites can use longer trails, up to 30 minutes each way.
Use the zoom controls and Night tint as needed. Choose Use camera for an approximate camera overlay; frames are previewed only, never recorded or uploaded by P-Track. Move away from magnets and metal when compass uncertainty is high. If the satellite leaves the frame, follow the direction guidance; if it drops below the horizon, the app explains why its marker is hidden.
Optional cloud forecasts
In Pass reminders, turn on Cloud cover in notifications to share approximate observing coordinates with P-Track’s API and MET Norway. The current update requires a separate weather choice. The explanation stays beside the switch. Forecasts also support Tonight and the Watch companion. Exact coordinates and place names are not sent to the weather provider. Turn weather off anytime; pass reminders remain enabled.
Cloud cover is estimated near the predicted pass peak. A queued alert may contain an older forecast; open the app to refresh. Missing weather is shown as unavailable. Cloud forecasts cannot guarantee visibility.
iPad and Apple Watch
On iPad, rotate the device and resize the window to adapt the globe, radar and list. The Apple Watch companion requires a paired iPhone running P-Track; it cannot pair with iPad. Open the phone app, choose an observing place, and open the Watch app to synchronize upcoming passes.
Watch direction guidance is north-up, not a live wrist compass. Reminder changes need a reachable iPhone and confirmation. Complications use the last synchronized snapshot and show stale or unavailable information when needed. iOS and watchOS control notification mirroring and delivery.
Explore the models
Tap the Sun or Moon to rotate and zoom it, switch directly between the two bodies, and use Back to Earth to return. Satellite information includes a larger spacecraft model, available dimensions and mass with sources, and tappable explanations for supported parts. Models and images are representative artwork, not engineering drawings. Constellation names and Sun/Moon orbit paths default off and can be changed in Display settings.
Widgets and Live Activities
Add a P-Track widget through iOS’s widget gallery on supported Home Screen or Lock Screen layouts. Select a supported favorite in the app. Open a pass and choose Follow this pass for the focused countdown and available Live Activity control. Free widgets support both space stations; Pro extends access to supported Pro satellites.
Widgets need current, complete prediction coverage and may show uncertainty or no matching pass. iOS controls widget refresh and Live Activity availability. Open the app to refresh predictions, and check your device’s Live Activity settings if the option is unavailable.
Free and Pro
Free includes ISS and Tiangong tracking, forecasts, radar, Sky Finder, basic reminders at one editable saved place, station widgets, the welcome guide and night tint. Catalog information is free to browse.
Pro adds tracking and observing for supported GPS, Starlink and Other satellites, additional saved places, custom reminder windows and numerical estimated-brightness filters. The catalog follows available orbital data and does not guarantee coverage of every spacecraft. Monthly and six-month subscriptions provide the same Pro access.
Restore or cancel a subscription
Open a Pro offer and continue to plan selection, then choose Restore Purchases with the Apple account used for the purchase. Manage or cancel a subscription in iPhone Settings under your Apple account’s Subscriptions. Deleting the app does not cancel it. Current prices and renewal terms appear before purchase.
Data, playback and the ionosphere
Internet is needed for fresh satellite data and CODE/University of Bern ionosphere maps. During an outage, P-Track can use a limited local cache and tells you when coverage is stale, missing or incomplete. Globe playback is limited to available orbital data; Observe and Sky Finder use the real clock. VTEC maps show ionospheric electron content with labeled contours and adjustable opacity. Visit service status for known service issues.
Contact support
Email support@ptrackapp.com with your device model, OS version, P-Track version/build, and the steps that led to the issue. Include the satellite and displayed time if relevant. Do not send passwords, private keys or payment-card details.
P-Track is for education and exploration. Positions, predictions and pointing are estimates, not navigation or safety-critical guidance.