0.17.0#

  • Release Date: 2021-07-16

  • Commit: 3025fbc2

  • Full changelog: link

Download v0.17.0 on the OpenSpace website installation page. The below notes about new content, new features, and bug fixes are highlights that will be of most interest to OpenSpace users.

New content#

Exoplanet systems#

  • Added colored glare to exoplanet stars: The size of the glare scales depends on the stellar radius and stellar temperature in the NASA Exoplanet Archive

  • Added habitable zone for exoplanet systems: This disk is enabled by default after an exoplanet system is added to the scene (read how to do this here). This habitable zone disk has three colors, with red and blue indicating optimistic boundaries and green a conservative boundary where liquid water may be possible. The habitable zone disk was computed using formulas and coefficients by Kopparapu et al (2015) Habitable Zones Around Main-Sequence Stars: Dependence on Planetary Mass

  • Added 1 Astronomical Unit (AU) size comparison ring for exoplanet systems and our solar system. This ring allows size comparisons between exoplanet systems and our solar system

  • For more about the exoplanet module, see the Exoplanet page

James Webb Space Telescope profile#

This profile includes:

  • 3D model of the James Webb Space Telescope

  • 2 JWST trails (1 showing with respect to L2 Lagrange point, and the other with respect to the Sun)

  • Safe viewing band

  • Field of view

  • Lagrange points

This profile is based on a 2018 pre-launch planning trajectory by Space Telescope Science Institute (STSci) published on the JPL Horizons database.

Improvements to existing content#

  • Added atmosphere to Titan

  • Improved Saturn’s rings

  • New Mars height layer, HRSC MOLA Blended DEM, which is up to 5x higher resolution

  • Updated OSIRIS-REx profile with more of the imaging campaign and a new hi-res model of Bennu

  • Updated ISS model so it is more accurate

New features#

New Session Recording features#

These new features should make Session Recordings easier to create and use

  • Pausing and looping are now supported from the Session Recording menu

  • Export frames at whatever framerate you choose from the Session Recording menu

  • Previously, if you changed a property during a recording, you would need to reset those properties before playing back the recording. Now, any property changes made during the recording will be reset at the start of playback

  • A file will generate an error message and will not play back if it contains assets that are not currently loaded

Better 3D models#

Previously, there was limited support for 3D models. Now, there is support for:

  • All major 3D model formats

  • Animated models

  • Multitextured models

Many models in OpenSpace have been updated and will have an improved appearance.

Logarithmic sliders#

This makes handling sliders with large values easier to handle.

Color picker#

While it has been possible to enter the RGB values for assets with colors (such as trails, labels, Digital Universe datasets) in the Scene menu under Renderable ‣ Appearance, there is now a color picker menu accessed by clicking on the colored square next to the RGB values/sliders. You can select a color using the color sliders, and input HEX, RGB, or HSL values (toggle between these with the up and down arrow next to the values, at the bottom of the color picker).

User folder#

Added one central location for user profiles, assets, screenshots, and config files, which will make it easier to upgrade OpenSpace moving forward.

More obvious shutdown message#

This is to help prevent accidental closing of the application.

Font size on-screen info text can be adjusted#

The on-screen shutdown, log, friction, and version info text can be made larger or smaller in the openspace.cfg file under FontSize. The dashboard (top left) information can still be adjusted in the Settings menu under Dashboard.

Equirectangular configuration#

Select this configuration at start-up to render or livestream 360-degree videos, such as for YouTube 360.

Select scripts in profile editor#

You can now choose scripts from the script log to add to your custom profile and when creating keybindings.

Bug fixes#

  • Mostly eliminated an issue where planets disappear when changing focus

  • Fixed misaligned surface textures for Callisto, Europa, Jupiter, Titan, and Saturn

  • The rate of time is preserved in Session Recording files

  • Fixed side-by-side rendering