High-Level Project Summary
Our main goal was to develop an universal, modular satellite tracking tool, enabling users to see real time position of the space objects, including the ISS. Our web application is built using 3D Models of Earth, ISS and satellite points, providing real time positions and trajectories. What's more, the user is able to add any number of custom satellites by providing a TLE format satellite parameters, which will be displayed over the globe. The user is also able to see the ISS in close-up and admire the high quality NASA model. By providing the modularity to add custom satellites, the user can adjust the tool to their personal needs, tracking the chosen satellites in time and space.
Link to Final Project
Link to Project "Demo"
Detailed Project Description
Github: https://github.com/mateuszaliyev/iss
Project: Warning! It takes a while to load :)
TLEs for custom satellites can be found here: http://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/
Our project solves the issue of tracking satellites in three dimensions in a readable, human friendly format - a web application. We also didn't find such a solution which would provide the ability to add custom satellite parameters (TLEs) to track your chosen objects in space. The application displays a globe with satellites, including the ISS, orbiting Earth. It also displays the trajectory of the satellite in certain time range. By the end of the hackathon we managed to achieve a working tool, allowing users to analyze ISS from up-close and see custom satellite data from a certain period of time. The user is able to check position of the satellite by provinding a date in the GUI.
The application has a great educational value, teaching the user about Earth and space science. The project itself can be easily extended to support debirs data displaying and earth-satellite connectivity.
The project was fully created using ThreeJS library, wrapped by NextJS framework, React Three Fiber, TailwindCSS and ReactQuery. We developed the solution using VSCode and Liveshare.
Space Agency Data
We are calculating the position of the satellites and ISS using Two-Line element parametes available here: http://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/. We are also using textures and models from NASA mentioned in the references below.
Hackathon Journey
Our team had no experience with ThreeJS library, so we had to learn everything on the spot - that's why we moslty didn't sleep during the hackathon :) We found playing with three dimension graphics very rewarding, as we could literally see the effects of our work :)
References
ISS 3D Model: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/resources/2378/international-space-station-3d-model/
Blue Marble texture collection: https://visibleearth.nasa.gov/images/73909/december-blue-marble-next-generation-w-topography-and-bathymetry/73911l
Starmap: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/vis/a000000/a004800/a004856/starmap_random_2020_4k_print.jpg
Sun texture: https://www.fddb.org/fulldome-images/nasa-solar-dynamics-observatory-sun-at-30-4nm/
TLE's: http://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/styles/946xvariable_height/public/9900389.jpg?itok=DUKSFFdQ
https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2019/01/the_space_station_s_robotic_arm_as_it_scans_the_columbus_module/19206434-6-eng-GB/The_Space_Station_s_robotic_arm_as_it_scans_the_Columbus_module_article.gif
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/tv-nrt.gif
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/kibo_installation_time_lapse_1.gif
Tags
#iss #space #satellite #TLE #3D #threejs