Super Planet Crash challenge (APOD)

[clive milne]

Today's APOD is very, very cool... give it a go. ;)

[strongmanmike]

Agree very cool, been playing for ages :thumbsup:

Mike

[clive milne]

How long have you managed to keep a stable system around HD80606?

Best I have done is 130 years.

[lazjen]

What a great time water, For HD80606 I've only managed 46 years. I wish I could change the initial orbit parameters a bit more, but it's still fun.

[N1]

Nice way to spend the lunch break......:nerd:

when you say you've managed n years, it's based on all 12 bodies I take it?

[julianh72]

Very cool! Ties in nicely to "Secrets of the Solar System" which was on SBS last night - watch it on catch-up if you missed it.

[clive milne]

Not for HD80606... the others, yes.

fwiw) I had the default template running with 6 or 7 planets consistantly in the habitable zone with a dwarf star in the system for good measure. It was stable and racked up over 300,000,000 points before ejecting one of the members at 496 years... oh so close.

[Paul Haese]

My effort and apparently in the number 1 position. Not for long I suspect.

Quite good fun.

[Paul Haese]

Actually if you save your game it says you are number 1 position no matter what the score.

[gaa_ian]

That is Awesome !

[N1]

I think they removed the hi scores because they were getting ridiculous. You need to introduce big bodies to get the counter going. Very entertaining.

[N1]

Careful with those stars. They really upset the apple cart.

[clive milne]

The trick to adding stars is timing and placement.
Add them first and make the orbital radius as small as possible. The polar coordinates of the existing planet when you introduce the star directly influences the extent to which its orbit is distorted. It's a curious thing, but if you bang a whole heap of 1m planets on the same orbital radius, they tend to shepherd each other. The heavier they are though, the less this works.

To see what I mean, select ice giants, put your mouse arrow just inside the 2AU boundary and add half a dozen planets on the same orbital radius. It doesn't matter how close together you get them.
If one planet is slower than the one behind it, the faster one will be pulled outwards and slows down, the slower one gets pulled inwards (towards the sun) and speeds up... they remain stable.

[clive milne]

I pretty much have HD80606 cracked....

It doesn't get much closer than this:http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/ab147/Clive_Milne/unnamed.jpg

Incidentally... the strategy that works on the other templates doesn't work here, you very much need to think outside of the ellipse for HD80606 (the mass of the planets {stars} I used should be a clue)

[clive milne]

If you do not want a spoiler (for HD80606...) don't click here:
http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/ab147/Clive_Milne/hd80606.jpg

[RobF]

Thanks guys.
Mega cool.
I think I'll be sleep deprived tomorrow though..... :D