Hey everyone! Here is a quick update on my current progress building out the core mechanics for my Universe Sandbox simulator. The main goal of this project is to allow players to create, manipulate, and observe stellar bodies interacting with realistic gravitational physics.

What’s Completed So Far:
Base Engine Architecture: Initialized the fundamental loop structure to handle real-time rendering.

Vector Math Foundation: Scripted basic 2D/3D coordinate matrices so objects can understand positions and relative velocities in space.

Asset Loading Pipeline: Successfully imported default spherical meshes to represent stars, planets, and minor asteroids.

I am currently tackling the absolute heart of the simulation, the N-Body Gravitational Physics. Instead of just animating planets moving in basic hardcoded circles, I am implementing Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation. Every object in the sandbox will exert a pulling force on every other object based on its mass and distance.
Once the gravitational physics are locked down and stable, I’ll be moving on to: Orbital Path Visuals, Collision Event Triggers, User Interface Controls. (The GUI isn’t great rn, I haven’t rlly focused on the frontend yet but dw, the final project will look rlly good)