VSCode Space 🌌

An interactive N-Body gravity simulation right in your VS Code explorer. Watch celestial bodies orbit, collide, and merge in real-time using the Barnes-Hut algorithm!

✨ Features

🚀 Real-Time Physics Simulation

• Barnes-Hut Algorithm — Efficient O(n log n) gravitational calculations
• Collision Detection — Bodies merge on contact with momentum conservation
• Stable Orbits — Leapfrog integration for accurate orbital mechanics

🎨 Visual Effects

• Smooth Trails — Gradient trails that fade from oldest to newest points
• Starfield Background — Thousands of background stars (performance optimized)
• Color-Coded Bodies — Visual distinction based on mass and type

🌍 Built-in Presets

🎮 Interactive Controls

Toolbar

• ◀️ Slow Down — Decrease time scale (-1x)
• ⏸️/▶️ Pause/Play — Toggle simulation
• ▶️ Speed Up — Increase time scale (+1x)
• ➕ Spawn — Add new celestial bodies

Mouse

• Click + Drag — Pan the camera
• Scroll Wheel — Zoom in/out
• Click (with body selected) — Spawn body at position

Body Types

Spawn different celestial objects via the + menu: | Type | Description | |------|-------------| | 🪨 Asteroid | Tiny, minimal gravitational effect | | 🪐 Planet | Small, orbiting body | | ⭐ Star | Medium mass, bright coloring | | 🔴 Giant | Large, heavy body | | ⚫ Black Hole | Massive, with signature red border |

📦 Installation

From VS Code Marketplace

1. Open VS Code
2. Go to Extensions (Cmd+Shift+X / Ctrl+Shift+X)
3. Search for "VSCode Space"
4. Click Install

From VSIX

1. Download the .vsix file from Releases
2. In VS Code, open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P)
3. Run "Extensions: Install from VSIX..."
4. Select the downloaded file

🚀 Usage

1. Open Explorer — The simulation appears in a panel in the Explorer sidebar
2. Choose a Preset — Click the ⋯ menu and select a preset
3. Watch & Interact — Pan, zoom, and spawn new bodies!

Commands

All commands are available via Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P / Ctrl+Shift+P):

🔧 Technical Details

Physics Engine

• Algorithm: Barnes-Hut with θ = 0.5 for force approximation
• Integration: Leapfrog method for energy conservation
• Collision: Inelastic merging with mass and momentum conservation

Performance Optimizations

• QuadTree spatial partitioning
• Circular buffer for trail storage
• View frustum culling for off-screen bodies
• Adaptive trail point decimation
• Separate canvas layers (static stars, dynamic simulation)
• Background stars update only on camera movement

Requirements

• VS Code 1.85.0 or higher
• No additional dependencies required

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License — see the LICENSE file for details.

👨‍💻 Author

Keshav Madhav

• GitHub: @Keshav-Madhav

🔗 Related Projects

🌐 Space Simulator (Browser Version)

Want a more expansive, full-featured gravitational sandbox? Check out the companion browser-based simulator:

Browser Simulator Highlights:

• 🔬 Scientific sandbox — Experiment with orbital mechanics, three-body chaos, and galaxy formation
• ⚡ Performance-focused — Roadmap includes Barnes-Hut, Web Workers, and WebGL acceleration
• 🎛️ Deep customization — Adjust density, radius, color for each body type
• 📊 Real-time metrics — Velocity vectors, FPS display, unit switching (m/s ↔ km/s)
• 🎹 Keyboard shortcuts — WASD pan, C follow camera, T/K/G spawn presets, and more

Perfect for when you want to dive deeper into gravitational physics without leaving your browser!

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Inspired by Space-Simulation-HTML-CSS-JS
• Barnes-Hut algorithm for efficient N-body simulation
• VS Code Extension API for seamless integration

Enjoy exploring the cosmos from your code editor! 🌟

⭐ Star this repo if you find it useful!