Orbital transfer calculator

[keermalec]

Hi, I wrote an orbital transfer calculator and would have appreciated any useful comments from fellow space fans like me.<br /><br />It was the sort of thing I was looking for and never found, so I wrote it myself:<br /><br />http://www.vrzone.org/space/orbit.php<br /><br />Enjoy. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>“An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.” John F. Kennedy</em></p> </div>

 

[qso1]

I wish I could write stuff like this. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[spacester]

Very interesting. The link doesn't work but if you go to vrzone.org/space instead you get the button.<br /><br />What I am seeing here are elliptical arcs but not reasonable trajectories between planets. The dV numbers look reasonable but the paths drawn on the graphic are NOT how a spaceship gets around in the solar system. Does the graphic ever change?<br /><br />I have all the formulae worked out and programmed in LISP for AutoCAD for Hohmann, one-tangent and no-tangent (Lambert's solution). The biggest limitation is that not many people have AutoCAD. It is a prototype for an application which WILL become reality in 2007. I'm still looking for a person to work with on that project but have learned enough now to see a path to doing it all myself. It's gonna be cool. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[keermalec]

No the graphic never changes, its there just as an illustration. I haven't taken the time to code the image writing part.<br /><br />The ellipses are one-tangent and assume that acceleration is instantaneous, which of course it isn't but its very close to what real minimum delta-v transfer ellipses would look like. You will notice that the 180° ellipse is a Hohman transfer.<br /><br />Btw the graphic was drawn on AutoCAD and I am curious to know your LISP formulae for ellipses. I drew them dumbly myself... <br /><br />PS: the link works but you have to fill in the fields. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>“An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.” John F. Kennedy</em></p> </div>