Space Cadet v0.4.0 is now released.
This update builds directly on the stable foundation introduced in v0.3. Instead of adding more content, the focus for v0.4 has been on making the simulation more analyzable and easier to reason about.
Release: https://github.com/alexanderberglund1/kandidat-space-cadet/releases/tag/v0.4.0
What’s new in v0.4
The inspector panel has been extended with actual analysis tools.
Energy
- Kinetic energy
- Potential energy
- Total energy
- Bound / unbound classification based on total energy
Orbital parameters
- Eccentricity
- Semi-major axis
- Periapsis and apoapsis
All analysis features work both in Sandbox and Galaxy Demo.
Orbital values are computed using a two-body approximation around the dominant gravitational body. They are intended for qualitative understanding and comparison, not for exact real-world units or high-precision predictions.
What this means for the project
With v0.4, Space Cadet moves from being purely an interactive gravity sandbox to also functioning as an analysis tool for orbital mechanics.
You can now not only observe what happens in the simulation, but also understand why it happens.
This release marks the end of the foundational work on structure and UI. Going forward, development can focus on control, reproducibility, and deeper analytical tooling.