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FSX Spaceflight dynamics module for FSX

Hi Marc,

I'm here, busy as ever. Things are going well, I am feverishly working on a demo that will be (hopefully) available on Steam. If you need to follow it more closely, here is my FB project page (if you don't have it already):

https://www.facebook.com/TerraBuilder/

I'm updating it when I have stuff to show. Right now, I am working on backend (File system IO, proper structure loading, expanded FLT and CFG functionality).
 
Its getting closer, Misho :D I can't wait for the demo, btw, when available, are we allowed to make videos with it? :) (I don't have FB so I use this topic :P)
 
Marc L said:
Its getting closer, Misho :D I can't wait for the demo, btw, when available, are we allowed to make videos with it? :) (I don't have FB so I use this topic :p)
Click to expand...

Allowed? I would hope you would!!! ;)

I am putting together a package for Steam Greenlight program, so I decided to give the models a more polished look (no pun intended :D). This is the NASA Destiny ISS module.

2017-5-10_16-34-9-316%20copy.jpg

2017-5-10_16-31-58-894%20copy.jpg
 
can't wait to put objects in orbit :P
BTW, will this inclide "already in orbit satellites"? (Hubble, ISS and other importants sats)
 
Marc L said:
can't wait to put objects in orbit :p
BTW, will this inclide "already in orbit satellites"? (Hubble, ISS and other importants sats)
Click to expand...

You can "put" up there anything you want, either with a launch, or place it in orbit. I don't think I'll be building "everything" that's in orbit in real life, but anyone can build it using SDK, and launch/orbit it.

There will be a "permanent" list of "stuff" that are orbiting, which will be read in by sim every time it is started.
 
I'm gonna litter the living daylights out of every orbit up to the Lagrange points!
 
Heretic said:
I'm gonna litter the living daylights out of every orbit up to the Lagrange points!
Click to expand...

:D You'll be the Chinese testing their ASAT weapons! :D

I wonder if it would be possible to maintain an on-line library of objects in orbit, and every time user loads up the sim, it loads up the current one... reflecting current objects in orbit, visiting spacecraft on ISS... hmmmmm... :rolleyes:
 
Here is a quick "assembly" I slapped together in about 3 minutes. It consists of:

Destiny Lab module
2 Unity nodes
2 Pressurised Mating Adaptors (PMAs)
2 NASA TransHab expandable habitat modules
2 visiting Orions docked

2017-5-11_14-0-22-514.jpg
 
Educational mode: Modules will have an option to turn on a "cutaway view", enabling users to peek at the structure inside!
1f913.png


(And yes, there will be floating people inside
1f609.png
)

2017-5-12_14-13-23-395.jpg
 
This is a awesome case of stretching up an earth-bound flight-sim into a space-based-sim.

Question: What is the "Upperlimit" of this simulation Misho? How far "in Space" allows Terrabuilder its spacecrafts to go?
- Is a craft bound Planet Earth and "gravity-bound" to stay into low / high / geo-stationary/ eliptic orbit around Planet Earth? or..
- Can one launch and fly a space-ship from the Earth surface to the Moon? Mars? the rest of the Solare system (and back) with it too?
 
can we control those satellite? (as its your A/C, you can visit it with ChasePlane/EZDOK) or a fictoinal satellite that I maybe want to rotate without using anothers spaceship even if it was put in orbit a few days before? (idk if you will understand what I mean)

Can't wait for someone to built the "Homestead Avalaon Spaceship" :P or just parts to assemnet in multiple mission (a the ISS)

Misho, I love you :P (as friend ;) )
 
Ronald said:
This is a awesome case of stretching up an earth-bound flight-sim into a space-based-sim.

Question: What is the "Upperlimit" of this simulation Misho? How far "in Space" allows Terrabuilder its spacecrafts to go?
- Is a craft bound Planet Earth and "gravity-bound" to stay into low / high / geo-stationary/ eliptic orbit around Planet Earth? or..
- Can one launch and fly a space-ship from the Earth surface to the Moon? Mars? the rest of the Solare system (and back) with it too?
Click to expand...

Good questions.

Upper altitude limit in FSX is 100,000,000 (one hundred million feet) ,which is 30,480 km, which in turn is just short of geostationary orbit. Considering ISS (and most of the human activity) happens in Low Earth orbit (160 - 2000 km), there is plenty of empty space to play with ;)

My physics engine allows it to go further (computationally), but the FSX's display engine caps that number to 30,480km (FSX won't allow for the spacecraft to be visually positioned any further).

It IS possible to model a planet-to-planet trip, however, it will require some tricks. The biggest hurdle is that the transition trip cannot be modelled (for instance, can't show spacecraft at midpoint between Earth and other body (Moon, Mars,...). I can:

  • Model the interplanetary orbit injection (outbound velocity vector)
  • Re-texture Earth so that it appears as Moon, Mars,... (this would be a copy of the FSX scenery folder, something like scenery.Moon, scenery.Mars)
  • Model the interplanetary inbound vector (calculated from outbound vector)

So, the whole experience would look like this (going to Mars):

  • Perform trans-Mars burn
  • When burn done (coast), calculate Earth-outbound and Mars-inbound velocity vectors.
  • Save and exit sim.
  • Re-name folder "scenery" to "scenery.Earth", and "scenery.Mars" to "scenery"
  • Re-enter sim, load the inbound velocity vector and place the spacecraft into correct orbit around the Mars.
IF I can figure out if the folder renaming and scenery re-load can be done without exiting the sim, then the experience would be almost seamless (unless you want to experience the outer space transition in real time ;)). There are obviously a lot of other wrinkles (for example, planet size: I THINK it is possible to change size of the globe using terrain resampler)
 
Marc L said:
can we control those satellite? (as its your A/C, you can visit it with ChasePlane/EZDOK) or a fictoinal satellite that I maybe want to rotate without using anothers spaceship even if it was put in orbit a few days before? (idk if you will understand what I mean)

Can't wait for someone to built the "Homestead Avalaon Spaceship" :p or just parts to assemnet in multiple mission (a the ISS)

Misho, I love you :p (as friend ;) )
Click to expand...

Yes, you can. You can define thrusters and move/rotate them, or, a thing called CMG (control moment gyro) which some spacecraft use to change their orientation (Hubble space telescope, for instance). However, most ISS modules don't have any means for propulsion or orientation - they are manipulated by CanadArm. But if you want to build a payload that has manoeuvring capability, absolutely.

And yes, you can be inside your own spacecraft (in FSX, User Aircraft) and switch control to any body and control it ;)
 
Misho said:
And yes, you can be inside your own spacecraft (in FSX, User Aircraft) and switch control to any body and control it ;)
Click to expand...
MARRY ME (Im kidding ;) )


What about a military satellite with weapons? (space to ground), camera to see whatever I can see, or space battles?
 
Definitely possible, however, not a priority. At some point I'll release a SDK so if someone wants to develop it, that would be great! (the more the merrier)

One thing to remember with this is, with the physics engine overriding FSX's flight model, almost anything is possible. I can, for example, build a rocket from 30 components on a launch pad, and then "push" it over, and it will fall down crashing with all of its components bouncing and bumping against each other, just as it would in real life (and have fun watching it :D). You can't do that with FSX. The important thing to note is, my engine does NOT have a FLIGHT model. Someone who knows more about physics of flight could certainly write a new flight model using this engine. This is a BALLISTIC model only. As for the winged spacecraft, I'm hoping (haven't tested it yet) that it would be possible to seamlessly turn off space physics and turn on FSX flight model, at a certain upper-limit speed during re-entry (I believe someone mentioned that was Mach 4 for FSX)
 
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