Solar System Motion Simulator v2.0

More than five years after I first wrote the first Solar System Motion Simulator as a senior in high school, recently I decided to return to the program and fix most of its glaring flaws to produce a much more general, accurate simulator (nominally to demonstrate to my Astro 12 students but mostly just for fun.) This newer version uses the accurate 3D phase data of the planets (beginning by default as of 1 Jan 2000, but can be set to begin at any date by inputting an integer in the command line indicating the number of days elapsed since 31 Dec 1999), including all eccentricities, inclinations, and other orbital elements. Other features added include: There is no longer any rogue star intruder, though one could be added fairly easily.

Click on each of the links below to individually download each of the related files. Keep in mind that the graphics support file EGAVGA.BGI must be placed in the same directory as the executable or else the program will not function properly. If your browser tries to open the files rather than saving them to disk, return to this page and instead right click on the download link and select "Save Link As..." to download each file.

Terms of agreement (read before downloading) This software may be used, modified and redistributed in any way you please provided you credit me as the original program designer where appropriate.
Solar System Motion Simulator v2.0
  • Download Executable
  • Download Source Code (Header)*
  • Download Graphics Support File**

    • *The SSMS2 was designed in Borland C/C++ 3.1 and due to graphics features probably cannot be recompiled without the software included in that package.
    **This must be placed in the same directory as the executable for it to function properly.