Devlog 5

Hey guys, it’s been a long time since the last devlog. To be exact, a whole month. Unfortunately, I’ve been a little busy with other things this past month, but I’m back to finish the project. To say this up front: this is a follow-up post to the last one.

But now let’s move on to the updates:

• I’ve improved the accuracy of where the ISS rises and sets on the horizon.
• I’ve edited the favicons for every browser size so that they display correctly on any device.
• There is now a realistic replica of the ISS with interactive points where you can click on the actual modules, and they then tell their story—who built them and when they were added. (Photo 1 and Photo 2)
• A few improvements to the alignment and positioning of objects on the website.

I’ll finish this project, this week and next week so it’ll be ready in time. I’d love to hear your thoughts, and see you in the next devlog.

Devlog 4

In this devlog, I’ve taken a closer look at all the internal functions.

I’ve tweaked the Ground Tracker a bit and added real-world locations so that it displays the exact country and city when the ISS flies over them.

Another feature I’ve been working on for a long time is ensuring the correct direction and position of the ISS as it passes by. If you look at the sighting schedules and read all the information—or, unfortunately, don’t know how to interpret it—you might miss the ISS just because you didn’t quite understand it. You can now see this clearly with the image that’s attached. There, when you click on your desired date, you can see where you are, as well as from where, when, and in which direction the ISS will be visible, and for how long. This makes it possible for everyone to see the ISS in the night sky.

I hope you like it, and I’m already looking forward to the future with the tracker :D

A quick look at this devlog.

I’ve now made it possible to specify a particular location and then find out the corresponding ISS sighting times for that location, as well as the direction you need to look. I’m trying to make these details as accurate as possible so that they match actual sightings 100%. I’m trying to calculate these in advance as much as possible so I’ll know when upcoming flyovers are happening.

I hope you like it. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

In this devlog, I’ve made a few changes and added some new features:

I’ve now integrated the tracker and the ISS visualization onto a real-world map, where the white dot represents the ISS’s current position, and this dot moves smoothly and pulses. Below that are the current longitude and latitude coordinates of its location.

Another feature is that the tracker shows the ISS’s current trajectory and pre-calculates the new trajectory, plotting it on the map just like the current one.

One final detail for this devlog is the date and time displayed at the top in GMT, which I’ll probably change later so that it shows the correct time and date for everyone.

P.S. Of course, it’s a world map at night, so it fits better with the starry sky.

I created this design for the tracker’s background. There are various stars that vary in brightness and also twinkle differently. Shooting stars fly across the night sky in the background at random intervals. They are all different and have random timings, as well as different locations where they appear. They also fly across the sky in different directions. The image I’ve attached shows a small section of the background. I hope you can see it, in the picture.