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(2016): OpenRocket Simulator for Windows PC

General

  • Fully cross-platform, written in Java
  • Fully documented simulation methods
  • Open Source, source code available under the GNU GPL

User interface

  • Easy-to-use user interface for rocket design
  • Real-time view of CG and CP position
  • Real-time flight altitude, velocity and acceleration information from a continuous simulation performed in the background
  • Zoomable schematic view of rocket from the side or rear, with rotation around the center axis

Design

  • A multitude of available components to choose from
  • Trapezoidalelliptical and free-form fins supported
  • Support for canted fins (roll stabilization)
  • Staging and clustering support
  • Automatic calculation of component mass and CG based on shape and density
  • Ability to override mass and CG of components or stages separately

Simulation and analysis

  • Full six degree of freedom simulation
  • Rocket stability computed using extended Barrowman method
  • Automatic design optimization — you can optimize any number of rocket parameters for flight altitude, maximum velocity or a number of other values
  • Realistic wind modeling
  • Analysis of the effect of separate components on the stability, drag and roll characteristics of the rocket
  • Fully configurable plotting, with various preset configurations
  • Simulation data can be exported to CSV files for further analysis
  • Simulation listeners allowing custom-made code to interact with the rocket during flight simulation

Planned future features

OpenRocket is under constant work in the free time of the developers. You can have a sneak preview on what has been planned by checking the TODO-file on github.
Below are a few major features that are under consideration:
  • Aerodynamic computation using CFD 
  • Better support for supersonic simulation.
  • Customized support for hybrid rocket motors and water rockets
  • Importing and plotting actual flight data from altimeters
  • Rocket flight animation
  • A "wizard" for creating new rocket designs
  • More ideas are listed in the TODO-file!

OpenRocket Simulator

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