Category Archives: Software

FISO: Copernicus trajectory design and optimization system

September 19, 2013 TopSpacer

The latest presentation to the Future In-Space Operations (FISO) study group is now posted in the FISO Working Group Presentations Archive. Both slides (pdf) and audio (mp3) are available for the talk, Copernicus Trajectory Design and Optimization System, Jerry Condon , NASA JSC – September 18, 2013

Here is a Constellation era video about the Copernicus tool:

Contests and Games, Simulators, Software

The Kerbal Space Program conquers JPL

August 16, 2013 TopSpacer

I previously posted on the Kerbal Space Program, a game which has a whimsical interface but uses realistic physics for its rockets and orbital mechanics: Kerbal Space Program – a game to create your own space program – Space-for-All.

This article describes the game and why it “is getting more and more attention recently from the space geek community”, including places like JPL and SpaceX: Kerbal Space Program: The Spaceflight Simulator that Conquered JPL: Program is Praised for its Orbital Mechanics and Newtonian Dynamics – Moonandback

Here’s a video tutorial on the game:

Software

Cymbol – iPad app for symbols, special characters and more

July 30, 2013 TopSpacer

I’d like to welcome Cymbol as a new advertiser at HobbySpace. Cymbol is

an iPad app providing fast, easy access to symbols, special characters, and scripts used in scholarly, business, and legal content, is now available from PhoneApp.com. Choose from special characters that are an adjunct available in addition to the iPad’s onscreen keyboard. The Cymbol app saves text sequences, provides Unicode conversion and much more.

With a primary slant toward snippet editing and management, Cymbol is useful for package design or label copy, also. Use Cymbol to compose a brief amount of text with those special symbols to identify a product, company, footnote or a branding message.

Here is a review: Welcome to Cymbol – idevicesworld.com

And in the video below, “Science Educator” Owen Flattery shows how Cymbol works: iPad – Solving the Sub and Super script number… – iPadAppDiscovery

Simulators, Software

Kerbal Space Program – a game to create your own space program

July 7, 2013 TopSpacer

The Kerbal Space Program is

s a multi-genre game where the players create their own space program.

In KSP, you must build a space-worthy craft, capable of flying its crew out into space, without killing them. At your disposal is a collection of parts, which must be assembled to create a functional ship. Each part has its own function and will affect the way a ship flies (or doesn’t). So strap yourself in, and get ready to try some Rocket Science!

Some features include:

The Vehicle Assembly Building and the Space Plane Hangar allows players to build spacecraft out of any imaginable combination of parts.
Fully-fledged, Physics-based Flight Simulation ensures everything will fly (and crash) as it should.
Take your Kerbal crew out of the ship and do Extra Vehicular Activities
Fly out to Moons and other Planets
Procedural Terrain delivers detailed terrain at a vast scale. The Kerbal Planet is 600km in radius!
Mod-enabled, allows players to create new content and modify the game.
Ship systems. Keep an eye out for engine temperatures and fuel levels, and try not to explode.
Build ships with multiple stages, and jettison parts away as they burn out.
Full control over the staging sequence allows for complex ships and advanced functionality.

The program can be purchased in the KSP Store and Kerbal SpacePort sells add-ons.

Several videos about the software can be found in the Kerbal Space Program YouTube Channel. For example,