A celestial compass. The celestial compass includes a camera with a wide angle lens suitable for viewing a large portion of the sky and a many-pixel sensor for collecting images of celestial objects such as stars, planets, the moon and the sun. The compass also includes a computer programmed with an (1) astronomical algorithm for providing the precise position of celestial objects based on precise input of time (date and time of day) and observation position (latitude and longitude), (2) celestial navigation software and (3) coordinate transformation software to correct distortion, convert pixel image data to astronomical coordinates and determine the instruments azimuth. The system includes provisions for the input of precise time and location information.