View Windows
AstroGrav Help /
Window Types /
View Windows
Version 5.1
View WindowsView windows let you view a simulation in the form of a three-dimensional interactive model.
You can open a new view window by using the Window / New View command, or by using the Window / Duplicate command on an existing view window.
Using view windows fluently takes some practice - there are many operations that you can perform that involve mouse clicks or drags combined with different modifier keys.
You can select as few or as many objects as you like in a view window using combinations of the following commands.
You can also select a particular object using the Edit / Find... command.
You can change the point about which the system rotates (see Rotating the System below) by using the View / Fix... command, which displays a dialog that gives you several different choices. This point at the center of rotation is called the 'Fixed' point, and its current setting is displayed (along with other items) on the status bar. By default, the center of mass of the system is fixed. You can also Alt+Shift+Click on an object to fix it, or Alt+Shift+Click anywhere in the window where there are no objects present to display the 'Fix' dialog.
If you have a two or three button mouse, you can also set the fixed point by clicking the right button. This option is only available if you have selected 'Use Right Button For Navigation' in the view preferences. You can do this by using the Edit / Preferences... command (AstroGrav / Preferences... on a Mac).
You can change the object that you view from by using the View / View From... command, which displays a dialog that gives you several different choices. Your viewpoint will then shift to the chosen object, and remain there even if you evolve the system. The fact that you are viewing from an object is indicated by the 'Viewpoint' item on the status bar. When viewing from an object, looking around and rotating the view are allowed, but rotating the system and moving to/from are impossible (because they move your viewing position in space). You can also Alt+Control+Click (Alt+Command+Click on a Mac) on an object to view from it, or Alt+Control+Click (Alt+Command+Click on a Mac) anywhere in the window where there are no objects present to display the 'View From' dialog.
If you have a three button mouse, you can also change the object that you view from by clicking the middle button.
To look around, drag the mouse without holding any modifier keys down. This will enable you to look left, right, up, or down without moving your viewing position in space.
You can also look around using the keyboard. To look left, right, up, or down without moving your position in space, use one of the four arrow keys without holding any modifier keys down.
To rotate the view, drag the mouse while holding down the Alt key. This will enable you to rotate your view clockwise or anticlockwise without moving your viewing position in space.
You can also rotate the view using the keyboard. To rotate your view clockwise or anticlockwise without moving your position in space, use one of the four arrow keys while holding down the Alt key.
To rotate the system about the fixed object, drag the mouse while holding down the Shift key. This will enable you to rotate the system about an axis in the plane of the window (and perpendicular to the direction of dragging) that passes through the fixed object.
If you have a two or three button mouse, you can also rotate the system about the fixed object by dragging the mouse with the right button. This option is only available if you have selected 'Use Right Button For Navigation' in the view preferences. You can do this by using the Edit / Preferences... command (AstroGrav / Preferences... on a Mac).
You can also rotate the system about the fixed object using the keyboard. To rotate the system about an axis in the plane of the window that passes through the fixed object, use one of the four arrow keys while holding down the Shift key.
To move to/from the fixed object, drag the mouse while holding down the Control key (Command key on a Mac). This will enable you to move your viewpoint towards or away from the fixed object depending on whether you drag towards the upper-right or the lower-left.
If you have a three button mouse or a mouse with a scroll wheel, you can also move to/from the fixed object by dragging the mouse with the middle button or rotating the scroll wheel.
You can also move to/from the fixed object using the keyboard. To move towards or away from the fixed object, use one of the four arrow keys while holding down the Control key (Command key on a Mac).
To display the angle between two objects, drag the mouse from one object to the other while holding down the Control and Shift keys (Command and Shift keys on a Mac). The displayed angle will remain attached to the two objects as the simulation evolves. You can repeat this process to draw as many angles as necessary.
To display the angle between an object and a fixed point on the celestial sphere, drag the mouse from the object to the fixed point (or vice versa) while holding down the Control and Shift keys (Command and Shift keys on a Mac). The displayed angle will remain attached to the object as the simulation evolves. You can repeat this process to draw as many angles as necessary.
To display the angle between two fixed points on the celestial sphere, drag the mouse from one point to the other while holding down the Control and Shift keys (Command and Shift keys on a Mac). The displayed angle will remain fixed as the simulation evolves. You can repeat this process to draw as many angles as necessary.
To remove an angle that is already displayed, repeat what you originally did to display the angle; ie, drag the mouse from one end to the other while holding down the Control and Shift keys (Command and Shift keys on a Mac).
You cannot display the angle between two points using the keyboard.
The main mouse click and mouse drag operations that can be performed on view windows are summarised in the following tables. These tables can also be viewed from within AstroGrav itself by using the Help / Navigation Guide command. The right button operations are only available if you have selected 'Use Right Button For Navigation' in the view preferences. You can do this by using the Edit / Preferences... command (AstroGrav / Preferences... on a Mac).
Operation Left Button Right Button Middle Button Where Select Object Click x x On an object Select / Deselect Shift Click x x Anywhere Select / Deselect Control Click x x On an object Fix Object Alt Shift Click Click x On an object Fix Center of Mass Alt Shift Click Click x Empty Space View From Object Alt Control Click x Click On an object View From Space Alt Control Click x Click Empty Space
[On a Mac, Command should be used in place of Control.]
Operation Left Button Right Button Middle Button Keyboard Alternative Look Around Drag x x LRUD Rotate View Alt Drag x x Alt LRUD Rotate System Shift Drag Drag x Shift LRUD Move To/From Control Drag x Drag Control LRUD
LRUD = Left/Right/Up/Down
[On a Mac, Command should be used in place of Control.]
To change the magnification, you can use the items in the View / Magnification menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following four commands.
Much Smaller (
) which greatly decreases the magnification of the active view window.
Smaller (
) which slightly decreases the magnification of the active view window.
Larger (
) which slightly increases the magnification of the active view window.
Much Larger (
) which greatly increases the magnification of the active view window.
To change the brightness, you can use the items in the View / Brightness menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following four commands.
Much Dimmer (
) which greatly decreases the brightness of the active view window.
Dimmer (
) which slightly decreases the brightness of the active view window.
Brighter (
) which slightly increases the brightness of the active view window.
Much Brighter (
) which greatly increases the brightness of the active view window.
To change the object style, you can use the items in the View / Object Style menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following four commands.
Standard (
) which shows objects using the standard object style in the active view window.
Intermediate (
) which shows objects using the intermediate object style in the active view window.
Photographic (
) which shows objects using the photographic object style in the active view window.
Circular (
) which shows objects using the circular object style in the active view window.
To change the show options, you can use the items in the View / Show menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following six commands, which are effectively on/off switches in the form of checkbox menu items and buttons.
Barycenters (
) which shows or hides the barycenters of the families of objects in the active view window.
Invisible Objects (
) which shows or hides any objects in the active view window that are too faint to see properly at the current brightness setting.
Coordinate Axes (
) which shows or hides the coordinate axes in the active view window.
Planetary Aberration (
) which shows the active view window corrected for stellar aberration, diurnal aberration, and light-time.
Magnitude Key (
) which shows or hides the magnitude key in the active view window.
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Three Dimensional (
) which converts between normal display and three dimensional display in the active view window.
Inverted (
) which inverts the colors in the active view window.
Grayscale (
) which converts between colors and grays in the active view window.
Grid Guide (
) which shows or hides the grid guide in the active view window.
To change the show all options, you can use the items in the View / Show All menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following eight commands, which are effectively on/off switches in the form of checkbox menu items and buttons.
Objects (
) which shows or hides the objects in the active view window.
Names (
) which shows or hides the names of the objects in the active view window.
Data (
) which shows or hides the distances, speeds, angular diameters, magnitudes, phases, and phase angles of the objects in the active view window.
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Orbits (
) which shows or hides the orbits of the objects in the active view window.
Nodes (
) which shows or hides the ascending nodes and descending nodes of the objects in the active view window.
Apsides (
) which shows or hides the pericenters and apocenters of the objects in the active view window.
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Tracks (
) which shows or hides the tracks of the objects in the active view window.
Velocities (
) which shows or hides the velocities of the objects in the active view window.
Accelerations (
) which shows or hides the accelerations of the objects in the active view window.
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Angles (
) which shows or hides the angles between the objects in the active view window.
Distances (
) which shows or hides the distances between the objects in the active view window.
MOIDs (
) which shows or hides the minimum orbit intersection distances (MOIDs) between the objects in the active view window.
To change the show selected options, you can use the items in the View / Show Selected menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following eight commands, which are effectively on/off switches in the form of checkbox menu items and buttons.
Objects (
) which shows or hides the selected objects in the active view window.
Names (
) which shows or hides the names of the selected objects in the active view window.
Data (
) which shows or hides the distances, speeds, angular diameters, magnitudes, phases, and phase angles of the selected objects in the active view window.
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Orbits (
) which shows or hides the orbits of the selected objects in the active view window.
Nodes (
) which shows or hides the ascending nodes and descending nodes of the selected objects in the active view window.
Apsides (
) which shows or hides the pericenters and apocenters of the selected objects in the active view window.
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Tracks (
) which shows or hides the tracks of the selected objects in the active view window.
Velocities (
) which shows or hides the velocities of the selected objects in the active view window.
Accelerations (
) which shows or hides the accelerations of the selected objects in the active view window.
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Angles (
) which shows or hides the angles between the selected objects in the active view window.
Distances (
) which shows or hides the distances between the selected objects in the active view window.
MOIDs (
) which shows or hides the minimum orbit intersection distances (MOIDs) between the selected objects in the active view window.
To change the background options, you can use the items in the View / Background menu, or the corresponding buttons in the tool palette. There are the following twelve commands, which are effectively on/off switches in the form of checkbox menu items and buttons. These commands are only available when using solar system simulations.
Stars (
) which shows or hides the stars in the active view window.
Star Names (
) which shows or hides the names of the stars in the active view window.
Fewer Star Names (
) which shows fewer star names in the active view window.
More Star Names (
) which shows more star names in the active view window.
Invisible Stars (
) which shows or hides any stars in the active view window that are too faint to see properly at the current brightness setting.
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Constellation Names (
) which shows or hides the names of the constellations in the active view window.
Constellation Boundaries (
) which shows or hides the boundaries of the constellations in the active view window.
Constellation Skeletons (
) which shows or hides the skeletons of the constellations in the active view window.
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Ecliptic Grid (
) which shows or hides the ecliptic grid in the active view window.
Ecliptic (
) which shows or hides the ecliptic in the active view window.
Equatorial Grid (
) which shows or hides the J2000 equatorial grid in the active view window.
Equator (
) which shows or hides the J2000 equator in the active view window.
Galactic Grid (
) which shows or hides the galactic grid in the active view window.
Galactic Plane (
) which shows or hides the galactic plane in the active view window.
Horizontal Grid (
) which shows or hides the horizontal grid in the active view window.
Horizon (
) which shows or hides the horizon in the active view window.
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