Celestia Forums

With the JWST successfully arrived at the Sun-Earth Lagrange-2 point, JPL HORIZONS finally released a long-running trajectory (2021-2024) based on its actual launch date online! This replaces the previous XYZV done back in October 2021. As always, model and textures are made by toutatis

Great work, thank you.
What is the license of the package and could it be included in version 1.7.0 and 1.6.2.2?

chandra wrote:could it be included in version 1.7.0 and 1.6.2.2?

As I've said elsewhere, there are concerns about file size, and I'd rather not add additional spacecraft to default Celestia, since they work well as addons. Many spacecraft addons, including the updated JWST, are now available through the celestia.mobi website and mobile Celestia's addon menu. (Even if additional spacecraft were added to the default program though, I'd favor interplanetary spacecraft over something like JWST.)

DaveBowman2001 wrote:With the JWST successfully arrived at the Sun-Earth Lagrange-2 point, JPL HORIZONS finally released a long-running trajectory (2021-2024) based on its actual launch date online! This replaces the previous XYZV done back in October 2021. As always, model and textures are made by toutatis

what i was waiting for, a longer trajectory, thanks for making it exist

Helios 1 and 2 were the twin spacecraft sent by NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) to study the Sun in multiple close flybys between 1974 and 1976. Helios 1 was operational from 1974-1986, while Helios 2 did so from 1976-1980. They were the closest artificial objects to approach our star until the Parker Solar Probe became operational in 2018.

This addon features updated XYZV trajectories for the two probes, with an SSC orbit taking over by the end of their operational lifetimes so that they keep moving indefinitely to the present day. Download the model and textures made by Jack Higgins here.

Venera 15 and 16 were two soviet orbiters that were sent to the planet Venus in 1983. I realized that for Celestia there was no addon that would add them to the orbit of Venus. It has the Jack Higgins addon, but it only shows Venera 16 on a cruise trajectory, not in the orbit of Venus. So I decided to create an addon that would add them around Venus. Orbital parameters are from Wikipedia. Next to the name of these spacecrafts, it is written (around Venus). You can search for them in Celestia by: Venera 15 (around Venus) or Venera 16 (around Venus). Models and textures are by Jack Higgins. If someone wants to update this addon to include the cruise trajectory, feel free.

Venera 9 and 10 were two soviet missions sent to Venus in 1975. Each consisted of an orbiter and a lander. This addon adds orbiters only around Venus. Orbital parameters are a little imprecise due to the fact that Wikipedia is missing some parameters. Models and textures are by Jack Higgins.

If you want to see them around Venus, you should research Venera 9 (around Venus) and Venera 10 (around Venus). The "(around Venus)" was added to differentiate it from the Jack Higgins cruising trajectory.

NOTE: This addon only adds those spacecrafts around Venus, there is no cruise trajectory. Many years ago, Jack Higgins created these spacecrafts on his cruise trajectory, which you can download here: http://www.celestiamotherlode.net/addon/addon_353.html

Download here my addon that adds the Venera 9 and 10 around Venus:

For the attention of DaveBowman2001
The model lem_A5.cmod of Apollo 5 (Apollo part3) poses a problem. At the end of the approach phase using the 'goto' or G function on the keyboard, the Celestia program stops and is erased from the screen. It must be the same defect as in other previous models like starlink.cmod which has since been fixed.
Using satgeneric.cmod instead of lem_A5.cmod does not present the problem.

Bravo for your addons
.

gironde wrote:The model lem_A5.cmod of Apollo 5 (Apollo part3) poses a problem

Yep, I confirm this is similar to the problem with Starlink (Sirius_Alpha also mentioned this on Discord), but a future revision is now ongoing gradual development.

Here's a preview of the new models for Apollo 5 and the Lunar Rover, which hopefully fixes the problems reported:

Also, in parallel with Project Apollo (Part 4), I'm also doing Akatsuki, a new Galileo Probe, and the Soviet Mars Program. Hopefully after this will be Pioneer 4, Ranger 6 to 9, etc.

DaveBowman2001 wrote
Also, in parallel with Project Apollo (Part 4), I'm also doing Akatsuki,

Only good news

Akatsuki, also known as the Venus Climate Orbiter (VCO) and PLANET-C, is a Japanese (JAXA) space probe tasked to study the atmosphere of Venus. Launched in May 2010, it was originally supposed to enter orbit around Venus just seven months later, however its engine malfunctioned which resulted into a flyby instead. However, it did inserted itself into a very eccentric Venusian orbit on its second attempt in exactly five years later, in December 2015. The spacecraft is still active as of 2022.

Attached are the latest launches from Starlink (35-36-37-38) and Oneweb (12).
The 38th Starlink launch found itself in the middle of a geomagnetic storm and lost 40 satellites.
The 13th Oneweb launch of 02-13-2022 is not yet informed on Celestrak.

The first generation satellites of the still-active Explorers program were among the very first spacecraft successfully launched into orbit by the United States. Although unable to beat Sputnik on being the first artificial object in space, the Explorers (particularly Explorer 1) discovered the existence of a region of charged particles around the Earth's magnetosphere called the Van Allen radiation belts. Five satellites were launched in 1958, only three were successful (1, 3 and 4). All of them operated for four months each, but stayed derelict in orbit for many years until 1970

This addon serves as an expansion to the original addon made by Jack Higgins to add three more Explorer satellites of the same design. Orbital data for Explorer 1 and 4 came from CelesTrak, while Explorer 3's orbit came from values from Wikipedia

(IMPORTANT NOTE: There is no Explorer 2 and Explorer 5 as they were destroyed during their respective launch failures)

Good morning all,
here is the 39th Starlink launch from 2022-02-21

# SpaceX reused the names from the Starlink L27 launch. So to differentiate them, I used
# "International Designer"
# example : STARLINK A becomes STARLINK 2022-016A
# It is the same for a satellite from the previous launch n°38 of 03-02-2022
# STARLINK Q becomes STARLINK 2022-010Q
# It is for this reason that you will find a corrected version in this zip file

on 02-10-2022 34 new satellites of the Oneweb constellation were launched. In the attached archive, you will find the .ssc file, the 3D models and the textures, and a lua table of the 34 satellites which can be used in Vidiba of Lut5 or for a celx script.

the 40th Starlink launch was on 2022-02-25. It's putting 50 satellites into orbit for the web.
In the archive you will find as usual the ssc file, the 3D model and the textures, as well as the table for Vidiba or celx.
Having found an error in the names of the 39th launch, I put the corrected files back.
the error is in the 3rd name of the satellites, for example Starlink V1.5 Gr4-7-A (38th launch) becomes Starlink V1.5 Gr4-8-A (39th launch). I apologize for this setback.

Wind is a NASA spacecraft launched in 1994-Nov-1 as part of the Global Geospace Science program. It was deployed to study radio waves and plasma that occur in the solar wind, in the Earth's magnetosphere, and near lunar environment. Positioned at the Sun-Earth Lagrange-1 point (L1) since May 2004, it has enough fuel to maintain its position there until at least 2074, exactly 80 years after it was launched!

This addon updates the XYZ and XYZV trajectories of this spacecraft until April 2022, with a very rough SSC-defined orbit taking over that also makes the spacecraft visible until 2074. Original addon made by toutatis and gironde

Rosetta was an ESA space probe that became the first spacecraft to orbit a comet. Originally intended to study 46P/Wirtanen, it was redirected to 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko after it missed its first launch window in March 2004. Months after arriving in 2014, it deployed Philae, the first spacecraft to land intact on a comet nucleus. The mission officially ended in 2016

This addon changes Rosetta's parent object from "Sol" to "Sol/Churyumov-Gerasimenko" ("Sol/67P-Churyumov-Gerasimenko" for Celestia Origin) and updates Philae's planetographic z-coordinates to the point it actually touches the model of comet 67P. Rosetta and their target objects were included to simplify installation. Two versions were attached, one for standard installations (1.6.2 and 1.7.0) and the other for Celestia Origin users (select only one).

All content, except for Philae, are made by other great addon developers described below:
- toutatis = Rosetta
- FarGetaNik = 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
- Celestia Origin team = 21 Lutetia and 2867 Steins

SpaceX continues the Starlink launches, here is the 41st launch for 47 Starlink satellites and which dates from 03-03-2022.

The Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE), also known as Explorer 71, is a NASA mission to study matter comprising energetic particles from the solar wind, the interplanetary medium, and other sources. It was launched in August 1997 and reached the Sun-Earth Lagrange-1 point just four months later, where it remains in active operation to this day. It is expected to continue its mission until its propellant is completely exhausted by 2024

This addon extends the trajectory of ACE from 2018 to April 2022, based on available data from HORIZONS. A rough SSC orbit then takes over afterwards so that the spacecraft's model stays visible until 2024. Original addon by gironde