A concept: The Celestia Toolbox

[Cormoran]

There are those of us who enjoy the act of creation that Celestia allows us. For some it is the accurate portrayal of celestial phenomena, and enhancements to the realism of the elements that are part of Celestia's make-up. For others, it is the chance to see objects that exist only in the imagination; New Solar Systems, sunrise on a world near the Orion Nebula etc etc.

I feel there is a small 'gap' in the virtual market, that being tools to assist in the creation of new Solar Systems.

I'm not talking about bulk creation of solar systems, I'm talking about piecemeal tools to ease the translation of ideas into visible Celestia entities. For example:

Asteroid belts in a solar system tend to add, in my mind anyway, a little more reality, but they are a complete swine to create by hand. A tool where one could feed in the particulars of a belt (Inner Radius, Outer Radius, composition, max eccentricity etc), and out the other end comes a fully realised asteroid belt with models assigned from the basic Celestia model library of asteroids and small moons, might be helpful (I've created one such tool, but its a bit rough to go public yet).

That's only one example. I'm sure that others have ideas on this.

I throw this discussion open to the floor. This is the point where there are absolutely no responses and I slink quietly away.

Regards,

Cormoran

[billybob884]

Actually, there are a few programs floating aroung out there, but a bit simplier than an asteroid-belt generator. There is an atmosphere generator, and a star cluster generator, and probably a few others as well. But i've never heard of an asteroid-belt generator.

[JackHiggins]

On bruckner's site, there was a program which would generate a random asteroid belt around Venus... I don't have it though...

[Cormoran]

I have a copy of Rassilon's Atmosphere Generator (Not quite a generator, but exactly the handy kind of tool I'm talking about).

With a little tweaking, my Asteroid belt generator will handle normal Belts (ie: between Mars and Jupiter), Kuiper belts, Oort Clouds, and even ring systems around planets (the first two are easy, but that last one may be a bit more difficult).

Only problem is I have to use the base models for asteroids and small moons from the Celestia package. Custom textures are a doddle for Icy, Chondrite and stony asteroids. I'm wondering about metallic ones, but I think they would look like high-albedo stony/chondrite ones. I tried creating new asteroid models in Amorphium, and I got some nice shapes. They just won't take cylindrically-mapped textures without having this horrible jagged seam.

Anyone with ideas on that one please tell me cos its frustrating

Cheers,

Cormoran

[billybob884]

You could try taking the models you have, importing them into Anim8or, and try texturing them with that. Just make sure their in 3ds before you try to put them into Anim8or.

[Cormoran]

I wasn't aware that Anim8or could do cylindrical mapping. Exported directly from Amorphium in 3ds format, planar mapping works fine. I had a look in the Anim8or docs for cylindrical mapping, but no joy there.

Can anyone advise? (feel free to email me if you think that sub-issue is off-thread)

Regards,

Cormoran

[JackHiggins]

anim8or is rubbish for asteroids because they're "shiny" when you export to 3ds... That's why I have "thanks to praesepe..." under all the asteroid models on my site... you'll have to use 3ds max, or maybe theres some other editor out there...?

[Cormoran]

I tried remapping them in 3ds too...I think its a problem intrinsic to Amorphium models, which is a shame, cos Amorphium produces such lovely organic shapes

Oh well....

I may build a config file into the Asteroid generator so users can enter their own collection of objects? Back to the drawing board


Any other ideas for tools, anyone?

Cheers,

Cormoran

[Evil Dr Ganymede]

anim8or is rubbish for asteroids because they're "shiny" when you export to 3ds... That's why I have "thanks to praesepe..." under all the asteroid models on my site... you'll have to use 3ds max, or maybe theres some other editor out there...?

'shiny' would be good for metallic asteroids though wouldn't it?

[Jeam Tag]

Hi Jack, Celestians,

On bruckner's site, there was a program which would generate a random asteroid belt around Venus... I don't have it though...

I've noticed it on my catalog... but i found no mirror site with this addon, so i don't update the address on my page.
This was a Franz-Xaver Schweiger program that i have used to create the screenshots in the picture that i paint on my 'site-like' homepage.
I add it there :
http://minilien.com/?1CCWnMruHD
1/The readme is in french (VenusRing lire.txt) but the original one is in, too.
2/ This program uses a file of the 'Planet texture generator' by the same autor: i have add it in the zip, don't worry!

If it can help
Jeam

[JackHiggins]

'shiny' would be good for metallic asteroids though wouldn't it?

It would actually yeah, hadn't thought of that... Most are rocky/icy though aren't they?

[Cormoran]

Asteroids can have a number of different compositions:

Icy - I'm assuming not just water ice, but these would be in the outer system
Carbonaceous Chondrites - Darker bodies, its believed Phobos and Deimos are from this class
Metallic - I suppose thse are 'core' material from shattered larger bodies that achieved some degree of differentiation during formation
Stony - classical lumps o' rock

The composition of asteroids (like planets) depends greatly on where they formed. The asteroids we've observed closely tend to be bodies whose surfaces are softened by regolith, so I'm not sure that a metallic asteroid would be shiny.

The Asteroid Belt generator code currently allows one to select the type, independent of distance from the primary star, from the above choices. I think I will add a belt type of 'mixed' to the code.

Jeam, thanks for posting that stuff btw. I'll have to take a look at it in the next few days.

Cheers,

Cormoran

[billybob884]

I add it there :
http://minilien.com/?1CCWnMruHD

It brings me to the page, then tries to download the file, but with no success.

[Jeam Tag]

I add it there :
http://minilien.com/?1CCWnMruHD

It brings me to the page, then tries to download the file, but with no success.

Mhhmm, i don't know what is wrong.
Try this other:

http://jeam.tag.free.fr/Celestia-AddonsVF/VenusRingGenerator-Schweiger.zip

or on the page

http://jeam.tag.free.fr/Celestia-AddonsVF/

Does it worK?
Jeam

[Cormoran]

That first link works fine. Thanks Jeam

Cormoran

[billybob884]

http://jeam.tag.free.fr/Celestia-AddonsVF/VenusRingGenerator-Schweiger.zip

that link works fine, the link they have on the page is http://ftp://jeam.tag@ftpperso.free.fr/ ... (Schweiger).zip and it doesnt work.

[Tuefish]

I have been looking for days for an asteroid belt generator, does anybody know of one?

[Chuft-Captain]

Fictional or real?

There is this: viewtopic.php?t=11910

which generates the orbits of real asteroids in the solar system.

CC

[bh]

Crikey! Bump City Arizona... where's BillyBob?

[Cormoran]

Ladies and Gentlemen, after a long absence I am back (making the rash assumption anyone remembers me and my dabblings, such as the (flawed) belt generator (as used by Mr Dollan), bits of the 40 Eridani system that Jestr did (and JJ Abrams promptly blew up) etc etc)....

I have been encouraged by my new fiancee to get back into this stuff (she wants a planet ) so hopefully I'll be making some contributions again....

I've been digging out and dusting off my old code and am rewriting it, and I hope someone might find it useful, but either way, its good to be back...

Regards, salutations and other positive stuff,

Cormoran