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📄 Devlog 3: Final Polish, UI Refinements, and WebOS IntegrationDate: 22 July 2026Project: Live ISS Tracker-WebOSFocus: Final UI polish, WebOS integration, and preparing for submission🧠 What I Built TodayFinalized the dark mission control theme across all windowsIntegrated the ISS tracker as a fully functional draggable window in my WebOSAdded a live UTC clock and status indicatorPolished the About tab with NASA facts, crew roster, and FAQsEnsured smooth performance across desktop and mobile🎨 UI & Design ImprovementsElementWhat I ChangedColor schemeDeep space dark theme with cyan and amber accentsTelemetry cardsClean layout with live data — lat/lon, altitude, speed, distance, crewMapDark map tiles, no attribution clutter, mission control cornersFollow buttonToggle auto-follow on/offLive indicatorGreen pulse when data is fresh, amber when retrying🔧 Final Code ChangesAdded smooth animation for ISS movement using requestAnimationFrameImplemented API fallbacks so the tracker works even if one source failsCleaned up code and added comments for maintainabilityMade the entire project responsive for mobile and desktop✅ What’s WorkingISS marker moves smoothly across the mapTelemetry updates every 2 secondsPath line traces the orbit since session startCrew count and roster are liveAbout tab with NASA facts and FAQsWebOS integration — draggable, closable, resizable📸 — Ashish Patel17 • CEH • ADG Verified • Building the future
📄 Devlog 2: Adding the ISS Tracker as a WebOS WindowDate: 22 July 2026Project: Live ISS Tracker-WebOSFocus: Integrating the live ISS tracker into my WebOS as a fully functional draggable window🧠 What I Built TodayAdded the ISS Mission Control dashboard as a draggable window inside my WebOSIntegrated Leaflet.js for the interactive mapConnected to wheretheiss.at API for live position, altitude, and velocityConnected to open-notify API for astronaut count and crew rosterBuilt telemetry cards showing:Latitude / LongitudeAltitudeSpeed (km/h)Distance travelledCrew count🔧 How It WorksFeatureHow It’s DoneLive positionFetches from wheretheiss.at every 2 secondsSmooth movementUses requestAnimationFrame to glide the markerPath trailDashed line tracks the ISS orbit since session startCrew dataFetches from open-notify every 60 secondsFallbackIf one API fails, it switches to another🚧 ChallengesMaking the map resize correctly inside a draggable windowHandling API fallbacks so the tracker keeps working even if one source failsSmoothing the ISS movement so it doesn’t jump across the map✅ What’s WorkingISS marker moves smoothly across the mapTelemetry updates in real-timePath line traces the orbitCrew count and roster are liveDark mission control theme fits the WebOS vibe
📄 Devlog 1: ISS Mission Control — Starting the BuildDate: 22 July 2026Project: ISS Mission Control DashboardGoal: Build a real-time tracking dashboard for the International Space Station with live telemetry, path tracing, and crew data.🧠 What I Built TodaySet up the project structure: index.html, style.css, script.jsIntegrated Leaflet.js for the interactive mapAdded a dark, space-themed UI with a mission control vibeWired up the live clock (UTC) and status indicator🔧 Tech StackToolPurposeLeaflet.jsInteractive map renderingwheretheiss.at APILive ISS position, altitude, velocityopen-notify APIAstronaut count and rosterVanilla JSAll logic, animations, and UI updates🚧 ChallengesGetting the map to look clean without attribution clutterSmoothing the ISS movement between updates (used requestAnimationFrame for glide)Handling API fallbacks in case one source fails✅ What’s WorkingISS marker moves smoothly across the mapPath line traces the orbit since session startTelemetry updates every 2 secondsLive/Stale status indicator📌 Next StepsAdd more telemetry data (altitude, velocity)Build the About tab with NASA facts and crew rosterPolish UI for mobile responsiveness🕊️ Final ThoughtThis project is shaping up to be a full mission control dashboard — not just a tracker. The goal is to make it feel like a real operations screen. — Ashish Patel17 • CEH • ADG Verified • Building the future
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🌌 Overview
Following up on the initial interface layout, Devlog #2 focuses on environment staging, repository restructuring, and preparing the deployment pipeline for production.
🛠️ Infrastructure & Deployment
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Hosting Architecture: Migrated the project layout to sit directly at the root directory level of the GitHub repository.
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Vercel Integration: Successfully configured automated continuous integration (CI/CD) pipelines. Pushes to the main branch now trigger zero-config production deployments instantly.
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Live Endpoint: The public facing interactive staging URL is officially live.
🎨 Visual Upgrades
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Asset Integration: Implemented an optimized, dark-matter cosmic background asset behind the primary UI layout.
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Contrast Tuning: Applied a dual-layer black alpha overlay linear-gradient to the background source image. This preserves interface element legibility while allowing planetary orbital paths to pop visually.
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Layout Cleanup: Stripped out temporary branding elements from the baseline visual wrapper to ensure a minimalist, simulator-first presentation.
🌌 Project Overview
Stardance is an interactive, browser-based gravity simulator built using p5.js.
The goal is to simulate orbital mechanics, planetary mass interactions, and cosmic chaotic systems through a clean, modern dashboard interface.
🛠️ Tech Stack
Frontend : HTML5, CSS3
Graphics/Simulation Engine : p5.js
Fonts : Orbitron & Inter
📅 Current Progress
What’s Working:
Core UI Layout : Implemented a sleek, responsive sidebar control panel using frosted glass visual effects (backdrop-filter).
Dashboard Telemetry: Real-time tracking elements ready for planet count, total mass, simulation runtime, and FPS.
Simulation Controls:Fully configured range sliders for dynamic adjustments to Spawn Mass, Simulation Speed, and camera settings (Zoom and Rotation).
Preset Engine Architecture: Buttons configured to swap between pre-calculated gravity scenarios: Solar System, Binary Stars, Galaxy Spirals, Planetary Rings, Black Holes, and Chaos.
Data Persistence: Hooks added for exporting state to JSON/PNG and importing custom orbital systems.
Recent Changes:
Applied a deep-space galaxy background across the canvas space to contrast against the bright orbital trajectories.
Structured modular JavaScript engine architecture (planet.js , presets.js,physics.js, sketch.js) to decouple physics math from render routines.
🛑 Current Challenges & Next Steps
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Orbital Physics : Fine-tuning the gravitational constant in
physics.jsso planets don’t immediately sling out of bounds or collapse into the central mass on spawn. -
Performance Tuning: Optimizing the $O(N^2)$ particle-to-particle attraction loops when the Chaos preset spawns high planet counts.
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Tail rendering: Ensuring the p5.js canvas buffer correctly handles alpha-blended paths for smooth planetary trails.
💡 Lessons Learned
When building canvas-heavy overlay interfaces, keeping a strict coordinate distinction between screen space (UI) and world space (simulation physics) is essential to keep zoom and pan gestures functioning correctly.
Devlog #2: Systems Architecture & Circuit Map Complete!
Hey everyone! 🚀
After a massive coding sprint yesterday, I have successfully locked down the core codebase for Astro-Flora and finalized the official hardware circuit schematic!
Since Astro-Flora is designed to be an industrial-grade, multi-zone life support system for extreme space environments, I needed to make sure the hardware layout perfectly matches the decoupled state-machine architecture of my code.
🌌 Hardware Subsystem Breakdown
I have organized the system architecture into four dedicated operational blocks:
Sensor Array Inputs: Dual capacitive soil moisture sensors (Zone A on A0, Zone B on A1) set to monitor a desiccation threshold of 450, an atmospheric thermistor on A4, and a fluid reservoir level unit on A5 to prevent dry-pumping.
User Interface & Audio Alerts: A 16x2 LCD display running via I2C (0x27) displaying live metrics alongside custom-rendered hex glyphs (Sprout, Sun, Moon, and Critical Warning). A master piezo buzzer sits on Pin 7 for cascading acoustic transaction tones.
Digital Security Interlock: A biometric badge-swipe simulator connected to Pin 10 using internal pull-up resistors to log crew entries and exits seamlessly.
Isolated Relay Actuators A 5-channel opto-isolated relay array connected to digital pins 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 to safely drive high-power external loads (Solenoid water valves, grow lights, radiant heaters, and CO2 circulation fans).
🛡️ Critical Engineering Safeties Added
While drafting the final blueprint, I made sure to add flyback diodes across the solenoid water valve channels. Since pumps and solenoids create heavy inductive voltage spikes when collapsing their magnetic fields, these diodes will keep the relay module and the Arduino Mega completely protected from back-EMF damage.
The schematic is officially mapped, the code compiles flawlessly, and I’m ready to advance from the Design Phase to the Building Phase as soon as the review clears!
Check out the full schematic below! 👇
Devlog #1: Laying the Foundations of Orion-OS
What I Accomplished today:
Workspace Initialization: Set up the full local development environment inside VS Code to begin building the operating system framework from scratch.
Core Structural Setup: Designed and structured the foundational codebase architecture, mapping out how the core software components will interact.
Logic Framework: Wrote and organized the initial background logic scripts, laying down the groundwork necessary for executing deeper system tasks in future updates.
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Pending review
🌿 Astro-Flora: Automated Martian Greenhouse Module
Devlog #1 – Building a Smart Greenhouse for Space
Hello everyone!
I’ve started working on Astro-Flora, an automated life-support greenhouse designed for extreme environments such as Mars and the Moon.
The goal of this project is to create a system that can monitor plant health and environmental conditions while minimizing human intervention and conserving resources.
What I’ve completed so far
✅ Designed the overall system architecture
✅ Developed the core Arduino software framework
✅ Implemented dual-zone soil moisture monitoring
✅ Added autonomous irrigation control for multiple growing zones
✅ Implemented climate regulation logic using temperature thresholds
✅ Added simulated day/night lighting cycles
✅ Built a crew access monitoring and logging system
✅ Added LCD-based telemetry display and status indicators
✅ Implemented reservoir monitoring and emergency safety alerts.
Current Progress
I estimate the project is around 50% complete.
The software side is largely functional, and I am currently working on integrating and testing the hardware components.
Challenges
Managing multiple subsystems simultaneously without conflicts
Designing a realistic space-habitat workflow
Creating a modular code structure that can be expanded later.
Why Astro-Flora?
Future space missions will need reliable food production systems. Astro-Flora explores how automation, sensing, and resource management can help sustain crops in hostile environments.
I finally finished Astropass and hit my 11 hours! I cleaned up the whole codebase and got everything running smoothly. I ended up adding custom graphics to the LCD screen like a padlock, checkmark, and warning triangle, and I used a clean switch-case state machine to handle all the terminal transitions without any bugs. I also built in a 3-strike security lockout that triggers an automatic 8-second cooldown if an invalid badge is scanned three times, and I set up a circular log system that prints the full access history straight to the Serial Monitor. Everything is fully pushed to GitHub and ready, so I’m officially moving on to my new Astro-Flora greenhouse project now!
Devlog #2
: Bringing the Astropass Core to Life! 📡🛸
What I did today: Successfully laid down the foundation for the Astropass security terminal and got the I2C LCD display fully integrated with the system logic!
New Features: * Fixed up the primary input buffer to read passcodes and badge IDs in real-time through the terminal lines.
Programmed the LCD to show live system updates (SCAN PASSPORT…) instead of just hiding the data in the background.
Added a dynamic fast-pass check that immediately flips the screen to > ACCESS GRANTED and triggers a high-frequency success chime on the buzzer when a valid badge is detected.
Progress: Spent a solid block of hours structuring the basic logic loops and troubleshooting the liquid crystal libraries. Ready to start scaling this up into a multi-user security system! 💎
Reposted by
@AshishPatel
I worked on the core system architecture for the LUNAR-SCRUB automated rover. I successfully mapped out the 16-subsystem hardware matrix, configured the FSM autonomous navigation engine, and fixed critical pin conflicts with the I2C LCD screen and hardware serial lines. The code and detailed documentation are now fully updated on GitHub!
I worked on the core system architecture for the LUNAR-SCRUB automated rover. I successfully mapped out the 16-subsystem hardware matrix, configured the FSM autonomous navigation engine, and fixed critical pin conflicts with the I2C LCD screen and hardware serial lines. The code and detailed documentation are now fully updated on GitHub!
Project Name:AstroPass
Today’s Progress: Successfully created and initialized a brand new GitHub repository for this second project.
Uploaded all the initial core project files to the repository.
Set up the demo link to showcase the current state of the project.
What I’m working on next: Continuing to build out the next set of features and refining the code.
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Pending review
A smart, automated self-maintenance rover designed for the harsh lunar surface. Because electrostatic lunar regolith (space dust) covers solar panels and blocks their energy source, this project uses an Arduino Uno and an ESP32 to run an automated cleaning loop. When activated, a specialized rotating brush sweeps abrasive dust off the solar cells to restore power generation, while a servo-controlled dust tank opens to collect and safely purge the debris. For navigation safety, the system integrates an ultrasonic sensor and an IR sensor to instantly trigger an emergency stop if the rover encounters deep craters or dangerous rocks
Reposted by
@AshishPatel
I am developing the core embedded architecture for a Smart Lunar Dust Cleaner / Solar-Protection Rover. On the Moon, abrasive regolith dust accumulates on solar panels, cutting off the rover’s only source of energy. My project solves this by using a dual-processor setup: an ESP32 to handle custom app data streams, and an Arduino Uno to execute real-time physical routines.
In this coding session, I engineered the safety override logic and operational sub-routines. The system coordinates:
A 4WD Moon-Terrain Chassis: Controlled via an L298N driver to navigate rough ground.
Dual-Sensor Protection Array: Combining an HC-SR04 Ultrasonic sensor and a LiDAR/IR sensor to freeze locomotion before hitting craters or rocks.
Automated Solar Panel Brush: A dedicated cleaning motor that sweeps abrasive dust off the solar cells to restore power generation.
Servo-Actuated Dirt Tank: Keeps collected regolith safely sealed in a containment box until a serial purge command triggers the servo to open the trapdoor and dump the dust.
I am developing the core embedded architecture for a Smart Lunar Dust Cleaner / Solar-Protection Rover. On the Moon, abrasive regolith dust accumulates on solar panels, cutting off the rover’s only source of energy. My project solves this by using a dual-processor setup: an ESP32 to handle custom app data streams, and an Arduino Uno to execute real-time physical routines.
In this coding session, I engineered the safety override logic and operational sub-routines. The system coordinates:
A 4WD Moon-Terrain Chassis: Controlled via an L298N driver to navigate rough ground.
Dual-Sensor Protection Array: Combining an HC-SR04 Ultrasonic sensor and a LiDAR/IR sensor to freeze locomotion before hitting craters or rocks.
Automated Solar Panel Brush: A dedicated cleaning motor that sweeps abrasive dust off the solar cells to restore power generation.
Servo-Actuated Dirt Tank: Keeps collected regolith safely sealed in a containment box until a serial purge command triggers the servo to open the trapdoor and dump the dust.