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My first CMOD sprites models
Posted: 05.10.2008, 15:58
by Cham
While the version without emissivity crashed my Mac (total freeze of OS X !), the version with emissivity appears to be working well (? I'm not even sure of that yet !). The rendering is almost right (??), except that there isn't any lumpy shadows inside the dusty ring.
Preview (click for a large picture) :
sprites.jpg
Here's the model and its SSC, to play with it :
Sprites_prototype.zip
The model has 10 000 points in it.
I can generate very easily any kind of models like this, with
Mathematica. Too bad it crashes the Mac when emissivity is OFF

Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 16:19
by Cham
I changed the picture used for the sprites. Adding some noise may help a bit, but we can feel a periodic pattern in the ring, because of the noise repeating itself on each small blob. Maybe we should have an option to randomize the picture orientation (Chris ?) :
sprites2.jpg
sprites3.jpg
Here's the texture used for this version :
blob.png
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:09
by Cham
Here's another experiment :
accretion1.jpg
accretion2.jpg
There is differential rotation, in this case.
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:09
by ElChristou
First time I load point sprites in Celestia via my brand new config! It works well but I don't have the same result:
Image 1.jpg
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:11
by Cham
ElChristou wrote:First time I load point sprites in Celestia via my brand new config! It works well but I don't have the same result:
Image 1.jpg
Maybe this is because I just changed the opacity in the model. Try this in the CMOD file :
Code: Select all
#celmodel__ascii
material # invisible material for basic mesh below
emissive 0 0 0
diffuse 0 0 0
opacity 0
end_material
material # 1 Main parts
emissive 0.55 0.5 0.5
diffuse 0.55 0.5 0.5
opacity 0.17
texture0 "blob.png"
end_material
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:17
by ElChristou
Nope, I still don't have the difference in your shot between the ring in front and behind the planet. My "ring" is quite uniform, the opacity change but all over the ring...
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:18
by Cham
Okay, try this version. Looks nice in Celestia (but ...) :
Sprites_prototype.zip
and add the following model into the models folder :
plasma_belt2.cmod.zip
This version is associated with the two last pictures given above (my previous post with pictures).
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:24
by ElChristou
Same; I have the two rings, but they are uniform... I guess it's an hardware symptom...
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:27
by Cham
Try this URL :
cel://Follow/Sol:Jupiter/2008-10-05T23: ... 2048&ver=2From this place, it's ugly :
cel://Follow/Sol:Jupiter/2008-10-06T01: ... 2048&ver=2I feel that the sprites code isn't very good for this kind of stuff (accretion disks). The disk is becoming too opaque at a distance. Same thing as for the dust rings without sprites (CMOD dots only). Chris ?
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 17:29
by ElChristou
Nope, I will have to try on a fresh build... (a bit later)
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 21:59
by Hungry4info
It's pretty!
It makes my computer cry though. Frame rate plummets to 1 or 2 fps when I'm close to it.
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 05.10.2008, 22:39
by ajtribick
Yes, the distance fading problem is annoying... pity, because it would be possible to make a really neat Beta Pictoris add-on with this kind of technique.
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 07.10.2008, 10:02
by Fenerit
Do someone has tried one point sprites' nebulae? It's fine. Nevertheless, there are pros and cons.
Pros:
Nebulae are seen in the same portrait from everywhere (right toggle doesn't change the view) so one is sure that the shape is that and no more "line" billboard viewed from different angle.
Cons; no one real nebulae rest in the same position when turned around...
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 07.11.2008, 21:20
by Cham
I made a new CMOD nebula model with sprites. It's working well in Celestia, but there's a strong problem, as shown on the second picture below.
The planetary nebula prototype at close range. Looks pretty, in full 3D :
nebulae1.jpg
The problem is shown here at large scale. There are many small red dots visible in the Milky Way, which is a bad thing. So the sprites code isn't well implemented in Celestia :
nebulae2.jpg
Here's the model for you to test, with Selden's old planetary nebulae (modified) addon :
PN.zip
Re: My first sprites model (Oh well...)
Posted: 07.11.2008, 21:37
by Cham
Modifying a simple parameter in the CMOD file gives some more convincing model :
neb1.jpg
However, there is still the problem with luminosity at large range (and sprite size with distance) :
neb2.jpg
Please Chris...
EDIT : Here's a variation with two colors :
pn.jpg
Re: My first CMOD sprites models
Posted: 08.11.2008, 17:55
by Cham
Nice nebula experiment (the only problem is the sprites model high luminosity at large distance

) :
Re: My first CMOD sprites models
Posted: 08.11.2008, 18:31
by Cham
Another nice experiment with sprites (click the thumbnail for a larger picture) :
gas.jpg
Re: My first CMOD sprites models
Posted: 08.11.2008, 19:50
by Cham
Yet aother sprites experiment. Dark matter halo :
Dmatter.jpg
This spherical shell model behaves very well in Celestia, even at large distance.
Re: My first CMOD sprites models
Posted: 09.11.2008, 13:50
by ElChristou
If you want feedback, better post the models, else...

Re: My first CMOD sprites models
Posted: 09.11.2008, 14:30
by Cham
ElChristou wrote:If you want feedback, better post the models, else...

There's a test addon, on the previous page!