Screenshot 1 of 5. A snow-covered wooden windmill on a hill at night under a starry purple sky, shown with the Aurora Astral shader.
What Aurora Astral works with.
| Platform | Java Edition |
|---|---|
| Loaders | Iris, OptiFine |
| Minecraft versions | 1.19, 1.19.4, 1.20.6, 1.21.11, 26.1.2, 26.2, 26.3 |
Aurora Astral is a cosmic-fantasy shader pack for Java, built for Iris and OptiFine and applied on the player's side only. The sky is the show: animated astral rifts at night, a huge planet behind the daytime sun and a moving galaxy in The End. Colored lighting, reflections and shadows sit underneath in a semi-realistic look.
Shader loaders and versions
- Iris and OptiFine: Minecraft 1.19 to 26.3.
What the sky does
- Animated astral rift, a layered cosmic fracture with flowing energy that moves across the night sky.
- Colossus planet, a massive celestial body behind the daylight sun that blends into clouds and atmospheric lighting.
- Cosmic sun with a solar halo and adaptive lens flare, shifting color from morning to noon to sunset.
- The End cosmos, a moving galactic environment with embedded fractures in place of the empty sky.
- Weather-aware effects and subtle astral reflections on shiny surfaces.
Two styles, one origin
The pack ships two looks. Aurora Astral is the deep cosmic one. Aurora Fantasy is the classic fantasy take with vibrant palettes and a magical aurora mood, and it has its own page at Aurora Fantasy. Both grew from MakeUp Ultra Fast by Javier Garduno (KDXavier), modified by in2bubble, with additional credit to Entokito. It is an independent modification, not an official MakeUp Ultra Fast release.
Performance and profiles
Two graphics profiles keep the settings simple. Balanced suits practical play, and Extreme pushes celestial detail to the maximum.
Installation
- 1.Install Iris (on Fabric or NeoForge) or OptiFine.
- 2.Grab the pack's .zip from its Modrinth page.
- 3.Place the .zip in the shaderpacks folder.
- 4.Select Aurora Astral in the shader menu (Video Settings > Shader Packs for Iris).
If the pack does not appear or the sky stays plain, the guide on fixing shaders that do not work covers the usual causes.
Questions about Aurora Astral.
4 questions
How do I install Aurora Astral?
Install Iris or OptiFine, then put the pack's .zip into the shaderpacks folder. Open the shader menu (Video Settings > Shader Packs in Iris) and select Aurora Astral. Nothing is needed on a multiplayer host, since the pack only runs on the player's side.
Does Aurora Astral work with Iris and OptiFine?
Yes. Both Iris and OptiFine have a build covering Java 1.19 to 26.3, and neither build requires another mod. Bedrock cannot run this pack, because Iris and OptiFine are Java mods.
Is Aurora Astral good for low-end PCs?
Not really. The creator's approximate minimum is a GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB, RX 5600 XT or Arc A580 for about 30 FPS at 1080p. The Balanced profile is the lighter option, while Extreme trades frames for maximum celestial detail.
What is the difference between Aurora Astral and Aurora Fantasy?
Aurora Astral focuses on a cosmic sky with celestial bodies, a galactic End and animated astral rifts. Aurora Fantasy aims for a classic fantasy look with vibrant colors and a magical aurora mood. Both come from the same project, based on MakeUp Ultra Fast.
