A 3D interactive visualization of stars within 20 light years of our Sun.
This is just a small project, generated almost entirely using Claude Code research preview.
- Visualize stars with accurate positions and colors based on spectral class
- Interactive 3D navigation with keyboard/mouse controls
- Center view on selected stars
- Toggle display of star names
- Visualize the galactic plane and coordinate grid
- Show projections of stars onto the galactic plane
- Display detailed information about multiple star systems
- Measure distances between stars
- Create and visualize "star-hopping" routes between stars
- Save and restore different view positions
# Clone this repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/solar-neighbourhood-app.git
cd solar-neighbourhood-app
# Create a virtual environment (optional but recommended)
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txtRun the application with the following command:
python main.pyOn Windows I run it from Powershell, running from WSL is a bit tricky.
--max-distance: Maximum distance from Sun in light years (default: 20)--fullscreen: Run in fullscreen mode
# Run the application with default settings
python main.py
# Show only stars within 10 light years
python main.py --max-distance 10
# Run in fullscreen mode
python main.py --fullscreenStar data is sourced from Atlas of the Universe. Special thanks to Richard Powell for compiling and providing this data (as of 2006).
The star dataset includes:
- Star names
- Distances from the Sun in light years
- 3D coordinates (x, y, z)
- Absolute magnitudes
- B-V color indices (converted to RGB for visualization)
- Spectral classification
- Add more stars with data from astronomical catalogs
- Include proper motion vectors
- Add search functionality
- Include more stellar properties