ORBITAL MECHANICS GROUP

Future Features of Solar System Simulator

  1. 3-D View of Solar System Simulator

    We want the user to be able to view the solar system from different angles other than just a top view.

  2. User's ability to choose units for position

    Body's x,y,z position information can be specified either in Astronomical Units (AU's) or in kilometers.
    Whichever the user prefers or understands.

  3. Magnification

    User's ability to zoom in and out of specific parts of the solar system.

  4. More efficient implementation of dynamically changing statistics for bodies

    Popup windows which display the changing x,y,z position and velocity coordinates of the moving
    bodies in the solar system need to run faster. In the present simulator, the program slows down
    quite a bit when these windows are called up.

  5. Time travel

    User should be able to rewind and fast forward time for any reason he/she desires.

  6. Orbit Tracers

    The bodies in motion would have tracers that outline their orbital paths so the user can see what
    the paths look like.

  7. Saving Configurations to Disk

    If a user creates a new solar system, the configuration should be saved on the server's disk so that future
    users can choose previous configurations which would otherwise have been lost.


    • Note: Items 4,5,6,and 7 require writing to the user's hard drive. There are very strict limitations in doing this for obvious security reasons. It makes for a very difficult time in implementing these 4 items, BUT IT CAN BE DONE.

    • Note: Not all of the future features are going to be implemented due to lack of time. Maybe future ECE120 students can add the missing features.