GalaxySimulator

A very basic N-Body simulator for visualizing galaxy collisions.

This simulator was made for my astrophysics project. Do not use it -- it sucks. It is entirely CPU-based since I don't have a graphics card to test it on. The code is threaded.

Run ./creator.out to configure the simulator. You will need to use the "Prepare Universe" option to add custom galaxies to the simulation, it is not done automatically.

Run ./simulator.out to simulate the system. If no window is created and you are using Nvidia hardware, chmod +x the program and try running it through Proton Experimental.

Build with make, do not install the program. It is designed to be portable.

Controls: Arrow keys to rotate Page up/down to zoom Space to play/pause Enter to change focus

For best results:

• Use low timesteps -- this will allow for the simulator to take more samples of every interaction and improve paths. [Linear]
• Use high budgets -- this will improve field estimation, giving a better approximation of the shape of the system. [Quadratic]
• Use a high radius -- this will improve floating-point precision. Don't go too high though! [Linear]
• Make the galaxy's mass no more than 25% of the black hole -- the initial velocities used in galaxy creation are calculated from elliptic curve approximation and are not designed for exotic ratios. This could be changed in the code for your specific ratios. [Free]

You should expect to have to timelapse your simulations.