Dune in Celestia!

[TMA_1]

Okay guys I think this could be a very big thing. I have been able to open up key files in celestia and now know how to place my own 3d meshes in there, add my own textures, know how to manipulate various characteristics dealing with mass and orbital tragectories.

Because of this I now am able to create complete solar systems of arrakis in the beautiful 3d space observitory program Celestia. It is a program where you can observe in 3d planets, comets, stars, moons, planetoids, in their exact orbits around stars. It is a beautiful program!

I will start out by making four solar systems. these are what they will be.

Canopus System: With Arrakis. I will get as much information on the solar system, and will add some of the DE info as well as my own conceptual information.

Delta Pavonis: This contains Caladan, and was once the mother star of Harmonthep. I will use much of franks works, but much of it will have to be conceptual.

Ophiuchi B: Home of Geidi Prime. Same as above.

Gamma Waiping: Where Salusa Secondus resides. Again the same as delta pavonis and ophiuchi. A lot of it iwll be my own conceptual ideas, with as much info I can squeeze from franks works.

I am hoping this info will expand on a subject that really isnt talked about much in Dune. It iwll be neat to finally see visually in 3d the planets of Dune, and their characteristics. I think it will be really facsinating and will help the Dune community. It will also be really Fun! at least I think.lol

I have just started, and made a crude bump map and texture model of Arrakis. I put in all of it's data, but placed it around the orbit of Sol where Venus should be. It is just temporary as I am still experamenting. I predict though that I will have a full solar system done within a week and a half to two weeks.

here is a picture of what this could turn out to be, it has a lot of promise. remember it is just a beginning and this is very conceptual. It iwll be a great thing though I think.[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[TMA_1]

here is another picture with the atmosphere shown. it will be much better when I advance on it and place it in the solar system it needs to be.[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[TMA_1]

It took me all this night, but I got on a role and finished the Canopus solar system. It isnt a finished version, and I wish to make the textures much much better, but I like the settings and parameters. I have made a zip of it with the data and textures, as well as a manual that I made with it, and it is zipped down to 515 kb. I really htink you guys will be impressed. Here are some pictures of the finished rough product.[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[TMA_1]

Here is a picture of Exteris, the concept is from the DE, took the ieas and I really liked this texture I made as well as just how it all looks even in rough form.[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[NHJ BV]

Very interesting!

[Vanguard3000]

Excellent work. Hey, do you think you could import those star systems into Orbiter? It would be sweet to make a planetfall onto Arrakis.

[Alia Atreides]

This is great work!!! It resembles some of the astronomy cd-roms I have used in my science class.

But the fact that this is your own design and creation makes it truly increadable.

[TMA_1]

good call vanguard, I love orbiter as well! was I the one that showed you it? or were you the one that showed me? I forgot, either way yeah I am actually looking that up right now, a lot different than celestia but definitely possible. Just waiting for mahdi to respond to see how I can put this zip file up so everybody with celestia can tell me what thy think.

by the way thanks for the compliments!

[Vanguard3000]

You showed it to me, although I had seen it before (I had never downloaded it though, because of it's size, and I had totally forgotten about it until you mentioned it).

Anyway, they both look the same to me, what with the atmosphere effect and all. I'll try and find the orbiter site, and see if there's a plugin or anything. It would be so unreal to touch down at Carthag spaceport. I bet you, with your 3D expertise, could even make Dune-style frigates to replace the shuttles in Orbiter. You could even add larger ships like monitors that you could dock with (i.e. the larger ships would be replacement models for space stations).

[TMA_1]

good call man! IM me with any of that info.

[Gobalopper]

TMA if its a zip you can attach it to a post.

[Procyon]

Nice job. 8) Are you astronomer?

BTW, where can I get Orbiter? I must pay for it?

[Vanguard3000]

You can get Orbiter here. It's free.

[TMA_1]

Here is the packet! hope you guys like it, tell me what you think![attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[Mahdi]

couldn't figure out how to work it.

[TMA_1]

okay, the manual might not have helped then. here I will illustrate how to do it on this post.

in the celstia folder you have a few subfolders. they look like this and go in this order.

data

extras

fonts

models

shaders

textures

Now, unzip the celestia file in some folder where you can see all you unzipped. You should see a new folder in there called "Celestia Packet ARRAKIS". Go into that packet and you will see three files. One is a data zip file, one is a manual, and the other is a textures zip file. unzip the data and textures zip files.

Now you should have a subfolder called Data, and inside it is a file called "extrasolar". You should also have a textures subfolder with a bunch of pictures in it.

first, copy the "extrasolar" file, and go to the celestia main folder where the program is.

data

extras

fonts

models

shaders

textures

You will see these files in the celestia folder, put the extrasolar file into the data subfolder.

Now copy all of the pictures. then go back to the celestia folder, and put those pictures in the Textures subfolder in the celestia folder.

If you did all of that, you have just put new files into the celestia folder. It might ask you to replace the extrasolar file, say yes to that, and there may be some pictures you need to overwrite, just say yes to all of that.

If that has all been done then quite file manager and run celestia, go to Canopus and you should see the solar system. Hope that helps. :)

[Vanguard3000]

I'll get back to you on this tomorrow when I'm at my apt. I have dial up here and, you know, dial up sucks.

[Mahdi]

All it has are the manual, a zipped data file, and a zipped texture file, none of that other stuff. When the data and texture files are unzipped, they don't hold any of that stuff either.