also Discussion: Persistent Plasma Trails

[AlamoVampire]

What I am talking about is something like this:

this is one of the final shuttle missions to ever fly I think. I think something like this would add a nice flair to the game. I am not thinking this is a high priority, but would be nice to see at some point.

Discuss

[rkman]

If you mean that reentry trails should be longer than they are now in ksp, i'm in favor of that.

Video showing how long such a trail really is:

Space Shuttle Atlantis

http://youtu.be/2XZgu7FStbw

[AlamoVampire]

If you mean that reentry trails should be longer than they are now in ksp, i'm in favor of that.

Video showing how long such a trail really is:

Space Shuttle Atlantis

http://youtu.be/2XZgu7FStbw

I watched Columbia reenter over my city with Eileen Collins in her first command. Was soo beautiful

[Atoning Unifex]

This would look great I think!

[austincurr]

Right now re-entry effects aren't trails at all, they're effects extending past the edge of the ship, right? So we need trails which are created at the location of the ship but are in the air not on the ship? So if we are re-entering very quickly, the trails will spread out further because we will move away from them faster and whenever we move a certain distance it makes more trail so that it doesn't thin? Also, contrails? Mach effects? Wait, did I just use a question mark at the end of every sentence in this paragraph?

[technicalfool]

The typical way of doing this is by using a particle system. Basically, the same way the engine smoke is made in the atmosphere.

The problem with this, is the computer needs to keep track of every particle, which for a very long particle trail, means a whole lot of memory and CPU time.

There may be other ways of doing it. For instance, using a particle system with much smaller particle lifetime, fading into very long criss-crossed quads joined up with a box-blur shader applied to them for fuzzy edges. The quads would basically be as long as necessary to render a curve with say, one-degree accuracy. The game still needs to keep track of the polygons used to render the trail though, whatever happens.

tl;dr: It would be cool, but would probably eat your computer for breakfast.

[AlamoVampire]

The typical way of doing this is by using a particle system. Basically, the same way the engine smoke is made in the atmosphere.

The problem with this, is the computer needs to keep track of every particle, which for a very long particle trail, means a whole lot of memory and CPU time.

There may be other ways of doing it. For instance, using a particle system with much smaller particle lifetime, fading into very long criss-crossed quads joined up with a box-blur shader applied to them for fuzzy edges. The quads would basically be as long as necessary to render a curve with say, one-degree accuracy. The game still needs to keep track of the polygons used to render the trail though, whatever happens.

tl;dr: It would be cool, but would probably eat your computer for breakfast.

right now with only 32 bit support, probably, but again, I think its something that would be nice in the long run

[jwenting]

I'd rather have performance than visual eye candy like that. And 32 vs 64 bit doesn't mean performance goes up to the point you can start adding infinitely more detail without losing performance.

[AlamoVampire]

I'd rather have performance than visual eye candy like that. And 32 vs 64 bit doesn't mean performance goes up to the point you can start adding infinitely more detail without losing performance.

yes, but, take a look at your smoke trail as you lift off from KSC, I doubt it would be game breaking from a memory point of view to do that same effect, but, tailored to the crafts size at entry and orange-ish

[rkman]

take a look at your smoke trail as you lift off from KSC

Right, that should work. I think the tricky part would be to have it look right, with the trail probably being part normal smoke and part glowing smoke.

[Bessy]

im sure a mod like persistent trails could be modified to do this

iv got about 60 launches with that mod tracking the paths its def starting to slow down now with them displaying but they display the trail forever and u can set it to alsorts and only display certain trails if you want.. u can launch a rover to the mun and draw on its surface with a thick bright trail and then zoom from the surface of kerbin and see the trail of the rover on the muns surface its a neat mod

but like you say it doesnt need to last forever and rather than been a 2d solid colour it can be a glowing faded texture that apears so far behind your craft that lasts for so long say 40 seconds of trail before it starts to delete steps

i like the idea tho as u dont really feel the speed much without a trail behind your craft