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A Vanilla JavaScript 3D engine v2 to track lifetime space travel

A Vanilla JavaScript 3D engine v2 to track lifetime space travel

by captainnemo729·Feb 26, 2026·1 point·0 comments
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AI Analysis

●●SolidEye CandyRabbit HoleCozy

Visualizes total space traveled with live Voyager tracking, but novelty fades after the aha moment.

Strengths
  • •Custom 3D engine renders real orbital mechanics (Keplerian positions, 51.6° ISS inclination) with accuracy, not approximation
  • •Multiplayer 'Party Predictor' adds social layer to a solitary calculation — lightbulb feature that justifies revisits
  • •100% local computation means genuine privacy claim, verified by transparent math disclosure in UI
Weaknesses
  • •Core insight (Earth spins, we orbit, galaxy drifts) is well-known physics — entertainment value, not discovery
  • •After exploring your own milestones and comparing with friends, repeat-visit reason evaporates quickly
Category
Productivity
Target Audience

Space enthusiasts, curious learners, people interested in visualizing their cosmic displacement

Similar To

WolframAlpha planetary calculators · Interactive planetarium tools like Celestia · Cosmic Journey visualizations

Post Description

A little while ago I built a tool to calculate how far you've traveled through space since the exact second you were born. The math was relatively simple (Earth's spin + Solar orbit + Galactic drift), but the feedback I got here inspired me to rewrite the visual engine and turn it into a proper deep-space dashboard.

Here is what’s new under the hood:

1. Vanilla JS 3D Engine: I built a custom Three.js simulation that renders your exact orbital alignment on your birth date and tracks it to the present. 2. Live Telemetry: It now actively tracks the real-time Keplerian orbital positions of Voyager 1, Voyager 2, and Pluto, plus the ISS orbiting the Earth at its true 51.6-degree inclination. 3. Cosmic Milestones: I added a "Party Predictor" to calculate the exact date you will cross 1 Light Year or 1 Trillion miles of total travel distance, plus a multiplayer tool to compare flight paths with friends. 4. 100% Local / Privacy First: All the date/time math and tracking is computed strictly client-side. Nothing is sent to a server.

I’m currently running this entirely on the client side to keep it lightning-fast. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the frontend performance, the Keplerian math, or any edge cases I might have missed in the 3D rendering.

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