recursal/Fanatic-Fandom huggingface dataset:
Speed of Sound

The Speed of Sound is the speed at which sound waves travel through the object's atmosphere.

In Universe Sandbox, Speed of Sound is a **read-only** property that is continuously calculated by the simulation.

## Property Details

### Location

The Speed of Sound property is located in the Atmosphere section of the Surface tab of the object's properties panel. This section is only visible for Terrestrial Planets.

### Units

Speed of Sound can be viewed or edited using the following properties:

* The Speed of Light (lightspeed) = 2.99792458×108 m/s
* Kilometers per Second (km/s) = 1000 m/s
* Meters per Second (m/s) is the SI unit for speed
* Kilometers per Hour (km/h) = 0.2778 m/s

## Simulation Effects

The Speed of Sound, *c*, is calculated from the object's temperature, *T*, by the following equation:

# c

1.4
∗
R
∗
T

M

{\displaystyle c = \sqrt{\frac{1.4 \* R \* T}{M}}}

where *R* is the universal gas constant and *M* is the molar mass of the atmosphere.
Guides

Universe Sandbox includes dozens of built-in, step-by-step guides to demonstrate how to use Universe Sandbox's tools and interface, explain how various parts of the simulation work, and teach a number of different physics and astronomy topics.

Guides can be found in the Home menu under Home > Guides, and are sorted into three categories:

* Tutorials, which explain the function and features of Universe Sandbox;
* Science, which demonstrate various topics in astronomy and astrophysics; and
* Lessons, which teach various physics topics, including the equations describing the behavior seen in the simulation.

During a guide, on-screen instructions and animations will show how to progress to the next step, and other functions will be temporarily disabled. To restart or close the guide, simply open the Home menu and select Restart Guide or Close Guide at the top.

To prevent guides from disabling other functions during the guide, turn off Enable Guide Rails in the Game Settings menu.
Select Progenitor

The Select Progenitor action will select the Supernova Remnant that produced the selected Supernova Cloud object.

## Property Details

### Location

The Select Progenitor button is located in the Actions section of the Nova tab in the Supernova Cloud's properties panel. This button will not be visible for clouds produced by a Type Ia supernova, which leaves no remnant behind.
Surface Tab

The Surface tab in an object's properties panel displays properties related to the surface and atmosphere of the object.

This tab is only displayed for Planetary Body objects, whose surface properties are simulated.

* Temperature
	+ Surface vs Sea Level
	+ Avg Temperature
	+ Min Temperature
	+ Max Temperature
	+ Stabilize Temperature
* Elevation
	+ Generated Elevation
		- Edit Visuals
		- Elevation Map 1
		- Elevation Map 2
	+ Show Elevation Map
	+ Elevation Span
	+ Lapse Rate

* Water
	+ Vaporize All
	+ Melt All
	+ Freeze All
	+ Stabilize Phases
	+ Sea Level
	+ Boiling Point
	+ Freezing Point
	+ Total Water Mass
		- Total Water Vapor Mass
		- Total Liquid Water Mass
		- Total Ice Mass

* Energy Flow
	+ Energy Absorption Rate
		- Fusion Power
		- Stellar Power
		- Supernova Power
		- Atmosphere Power
		- Tidal Power
		- Gas Drag Power
		- Laser Power
		- Impact Power
	+ Energy Radiation Rate
	+ Heating Rate
	+ Equilibrium Temperature
	+ Surface Heat Capacity
	+ Average Albedo
	+ Effective Temperature

* Atmosphere
	+ Atmosphere Mass
		- Total Water Vapor Mass
	+ Surface Pressure
	+ Atmosphere Density
	+ Speed of Sound
	+ Atmosphere Scale Height
	+ Greenhouse Effect
	+ Infrared Emissivity
		- Number of Atmosphere Layers

* Selected Grid Cell
	+ X Coordinate
	+ Y Coordinate
	+ Longitude
	+ Latitude
	+ Surface Temperature
	+ Sea Level Temperature
	+ Elevation
	+ Displacement
	+ Water Vapor Pressure
		- Water Vapor Mass
	+ Liquid Water Depth
		- Liquid Water Mass
	+ Ice Depth
		- Ice Mass

* Advanced Simulation
	+ Temperature Stable Simulation Speed
	+ Water Stable Simulation Speed
	+ Optimize Simulation Speed for Temperature
	+ Optimize Simulation Speed for Water
Selected Cell Temperature

The Temperature property indicates the surface temperature of the selected cell.

## Property Details

### Location

The Temperature property is located in the Selected Grid Cell section of the Surface tab in the object's properties panel.

### Units

Temperature can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Kelvin (K) is the SI base unit for temperature
* Degrees Fahrenheit (°F)
* Degrees Celsius (°C)

Conversions between these three units are as follows:

°C = K - 273

°F = (9/5)°C + 32
Age

The **Age** of an object is the cumulative time since it formed. Objects with a known age listed in the Universe Sandbox database (such as the Earth or Sun) will be created with the known age. Otherwise, the object's Age at the time it is added to the simulation is set to zero. The Age of any object will increase as time passes in the simulation.

## Property Details

### Location

The Age property of an object can be found in the Overview tab and the Cumulative Properties section of the Composition tab. For a Galaxy object, the Age is locates in the first section of the Galaxy tab. For a Galaxy Nebula object, the Age is located in the first section of the Nebula tab. For Supernova Cloud objects, the Age is located in the Properties section of the Nova tab.

### Units

Age can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Gigayears (G years) = 109 years
* Megayears (M years) = 106 years
* Years (years) = 365.25 days
* Months (months) = 1/12 years
* Days (days) = 24 hours
* Hours (hours) = 60 mins
* Minutes (mins) = 60 sec
* Seconds (sec) is the SI base unit for time
Laser Tool

The Laser Tool fires a laser into the simulation in the direction of the cursor. If the laser intersects with an object with a simulated surface, the laser will impart energy into the object, heating its surface. The rate at which this energy will be transferred depends on the laser's power and radius.

A real laser works by adding energy to a gain medium, such as a crystal or gas. This energy, at a specific wavelength, drives stimulated emission in the medium and produces a narrow beam of light.

## Tool Details

### Location

The Laser button is located in the Tools menu in the bottom bar.

### Settings

The Laser Tool has a number of settings that affect the rate at which the laser will heat the surface of an object.

* Preset
	+ Universe Sandbox provides a number of laser presets representing real and fictional lasers.
	+ The Auto laser will automatically set its Radius and Power based on the size of the object it is fired at.
	+ The Magic Cold Laser will remove heat from the object's surface rather than adding heat.
* Radius
	+ The Radius property represents the size of the spot that the laser shines on the object's surface. Radius, Total Power, and Power per Area are locked properties.
* Total Power
	+ The Power Out of the laser represents the rate at which energy will be added to the object that the laser hits. Radius, Total Power, and Power per Area are locked properties.
* Power per Area
	+ The Power per Area represents the power per area of the object's surface. Radius, Total Power, and Power per Area are locked properties.
* Auto Radius
	+ When the Auto Radius toggle is on, the radius of the laser will be set automatically based on the radius of the target object.
* Wavelength
	+ Lasers are characterized based on the wavelength (i.e., color) of light that they emit.
	+ Medium
		- This property represents the gain medium of the simulated laser, and will determine the Wavelength.
* Show Beam
	+ A real laser is not visible until it hits an object or passes through a material that will diffract its light. When Show Beam is turned on, the laser will be artificially visible.
* Push Water
	+ When on, the laser will impart a force on the liquid water on the surface where the laser beam hits, shoving the water away from that point on the target object's surface.

## Simulation Effects

### Surface Temperature

When a laser hits a body with a simulated surface, energy will be added to that region of the surface at a rate determined by the laser's Power Out property. This energy will be used to calculate the temperature change of that part of the surface.
Elevation Map

The Elevation Maps determine the surface elevation of Planetary Body. Two Elevation Maps can be used, Elevation Map 1 and Elevation Map 2, although one or both of these maps can be disabled. Disabling both maps will produce a flat surface.

## Property Details

### Location

The Elevation Map 1 and Elevation Map 2 settings for a Planetary Body can be found in the Elevation section of the Surface tab.

### Settings

#### Map

This setting includes a list of several known and imaginary elevation maps that can be used, including Solar System planets like Earth, Mars, and Venus.

#### Magnitude

This setting determines the intensity of this elevation map.

#### Offset

This setting controls the 2D location of this elevation map. The two elevation maps will combine in different ways if the Offset of one map is changed and the map moves across the surface.

#### Flip

The buttons for this setting will flip the elevation map from East to West, North to South, or up to down, i.e., along the x-, y-, or z-axis.
Remove Black Hole

The Remove Black Hole action will remove the Black Hole of the Galaxy from the simulation. The Galaxy Nebulae objects that made up the galaxy will remain in the simulation, but they will no longer be a part of a Galaxy object.

## Property Details

The Remove Black Hole button is located in the Actions section of the Galaxy tab of the galaxy's properties panel.

The black hole of a Galaxy object can also be removed using the Delete or Backspace key on the keyboard.
Enhance Surface Detail

The Enhance Surface Detail setting of an object improves the appearance of the object's surface, using high-resolution surface data to display better coastlines and improving the appearance of the edges of ice and snow. When this property is off, the simulated data will be displayed directly.

## Property Details

### Location

The Enhance Surface Detail is located in the Properties section of the Visuals tab of the object's properties panel.
Atmosphere Scale Height

The Atmosphere Scale Height of an object is a measure of the height of the object's atmosphere above the surface. Since an atmosphere has no defined edge, the scale height is defined as the height at which the atmospheric pressure decreases from the surface pressure by a factor of *e* ≈ 2.71828.

Atmosphere Scale Height is a **read-only** property that is calculated automatically by Universe Sandbox. The Atmosphere Scale Height depends on the object's surface temperature, *T*, and surface gravity, *g*:

# h

k
T

m
g

,

{\displaystyle h = \frac{kT}{mg},}

where *k* is the Boltzmann constant and *m* is the average mass of a molecule in the atmosphere.

## Property Details

### Location

The Atmosphere Scale Height property is located in the Atmosphere section of the Surface tab of an object's properties panel. This section is only visible for Terrestrial Planets.

### Units

Atmosphere Scale Height can be viewed or edited using the following units:

* Milky Way Galaxy radius (milky way) = 5.5×104 light year
* Parsec (parsec) = 3.08568025×1016 m
* Light-year (light year) = 9.46073047×1015 m
* Astronomical Unit (AU) = 1.495978707×1011 m
* Solar radius (sun) = 6.955×108 m
* Lunar distance (lunar dist) = 3.844×108 m
* Light-second (light sec) = 2.99792458×108 m
* Jupiter radius (jupiter) = 6.9911×107 m
* Earth radius (earth) = 6.37101×106 m
* Moon radius (moon) = 1.7371×106 m
* Kilometer (km) = 1000 m
* Meter (m) is the SI base unit for length
* Centimeter (cm) = 0.01 m
* Millimeter (mm) = 0.001 m
Atmosphere Mass

The Atmosphere Mass property of an object represents the total mass of its atmosphere.

## Property Details

### Location

The Atmosphere Mass property is located in the Atmosphere section of the Surface tab of the object's properties panel. This section is only visible for Terrestrial Planets.

### Units

Atmosphere Mass can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Earth atmosphere mass (earth atm) = 5.148×1018 kg
* Mars atmosphere mass (mars atm) = 2.50×1016 kg
* Kilogram (kg) is the SI base unit for mass
* Grams (g) = 0.001 kg
* Milligrams (mg) = 10-6 kg

## Simulation Effects

### Surface Pressure

The Atmosphere Mass is related to the surface pressure, *P*, and radius of the object, *R*, and the gravitational constant, *G*, by the following equation:

M

a
t
m
o

=

4
π

R
2

P

G

.

{\displaystyle M\_{atmo} = \frac{4\pi R^2 P}{G}.}
Replace Object

The Replace Object button will replace the selected object with another object from the database, or a randomly generated object.

Clicking the Replace Object button will open a menu similar to the Add Tool's menu, providing a searchable and categorized list of all available objects from the Universe Sandbox database, plus randomly generated objects such as Random Rocky Planet and Random Gas Giant. After the user selects an object and then clicks the Replace button, the new object will replace the old object in the simulation, with the same Velocity Vector as the previous object.

### Location

The Replace Object button can be found at the bottom of the Overview tab of an object's properties panel, as well as in the Actions tab.
Camera Inclination

The **Camera Inclination** property of an object represents the vertical position of the camera relative to the object. The Camera Inclination is the angle at which the camera would need to tilt up or down in order to place the object in the center of the screen. When Camera Inclination is zero, the camera's position shares the same y-coordinate as the object's position. This is a **read-only** property that is automatically calculated by Universe Sandbox.

## Property Details

### Location

The Camera Inclination property is located in the Camera Relative section of the Motion tab of the object's properties panel.

### Units

Camera Inclination is an angle, and can be viewed using the following units:

* Radians (rad)
* Degrees (°) = (180/π) rad

Camera Inclination is defined in the range -90° to 90°, or -π/2 to π/2 rad.
Photosphere Appearance

The Photosphere property of a Star object determines the source of the object's color. The property has two options: Default and Custom. When the Photosphere is set to Custom, the color of the star can be set by the user.

## Property Details

The Photosphere property is located in the Layers section of the Visuals tab of the object's properties panel.

## Simulation Effects

The color of a star's Photosphere will determine the color of the glow around the star and the color of the starlight reflected off other solid objects in the simulation.
Moon

A Moon is a type of Planetary Body object in Universe Sandbox, representing a specific Solar System moon, or a new moon created by the user.

Generally, astronomers and planetary scientists define a moon as an object that orbits a planet or other Solar System object. A moon orbiting an exoplanet is sometimes called an exomoon, although no exomoon has yet been confirmed. In Universe Sandbox, there is no distinction between the way planets, exoplanets, and moons are simulated, so this distinction is less important.

## Database

The physical properties of the Solar System moons in the Universe Sandbox database, including their mass and radius, as well as their orbital elements, are sourced from NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Solar System Dynamics website.
Calculated Radius

The Calculated Radius property of an object determines how the object's radius is determined. When Calculated Radius is turned on, the object's Radius is calculated from its composition. When Calculated Radius is turned off, the object's Radius, Mass, and Density become locked properties.

## Property Details

### Location

The Calculated Radius property of an object can be found near the top of the Overview tab by expanding the Radius property, and in the Cumulative Properties section of the Composition tab.
Total Liquid Water Mass

Total Liquid Water Mass indicates the total mass of water present on the object's surface in the liquid phase. This property is **read-only** and is automatically calculated by Universe Sandbox.

## Property Details

### Location

The Total Liquid Water Mass property of an object is located in the Water section of the Surface tab in the object's properties panel.

### Units

Total Liquid Water Mass can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Milky Way Galaxy mass (milky way) = 1.5×1012 sun
* Solar mass (sun) = 1.9891×1030 kg
* Jupiter mass (jupiter) = 1.8986×1027 kg
* Earth mass (earth) = 5.97219×1024 kg
* Moon mass (moon) = 7.349×1022 kg
* Earth ocean mass (ocean) = 1.4×1021 kg
* Earth atmosphere mass (atmosphere) = 5.158×1018 kg
* Kilogram (kg) is the SI base unit for mass
* Gram (g) = 1×10-3 kg
* Milligram (mg) = 1×10-6 kg
Radial Velocity

The Radial Velocity of an object is the speed at which the object is moving along the user's line-of-sight, i.e., away from or towards the camera. This property is **read-only** and calculated automatically by Universe Sandbox.

This property can be used to simulate the common exoplanet detection technique known as Doppler spectroscopy or simply the "radial velocity method". In this method, astronomers measure shift in the wavelengths of light coming from a star, and use this information to calculate the star's radial velocity. An exoplanet orbiting at the right angle relative to the observer will cause the star to move slightly towards and away from the telescope as the star orbits their barycenter, causing a variation in the radial velocity over time. In Universe Sandbox, the user can simulate this technique by using the Graph option for the Radial Velocity property.

## Property Details

### Location

The Radial Velocity property is located in the Camera Relative section of the Motion tab of an object's properties panel.

### Units

Radial Velocity can be viewed or edited using the following properties:

* The Speed of Light (lightspeed) = 2.99792458×108 m/s
* Kilometers per Second (km/s) = 1000 m/s
* Meters per Second (m/s) is the SI unit for speed
* Kilometers per Hour (km/h) = 0.2778 m/s

Unlike the Speed property, which can only be positive, Radial Velocity can be positive (indicating that the object is moving away from the camera) or negative (indicating that the object is moving towards the camera).
Support

If you're having trouble with startup, see the basic troubleshooting guide.

If you're still having trouble, start a thread in the Support & Bugs section of the forum (Official Forum | Steam Forum) or ask for help from the community on Discord.

If the support team helps, they will likely need to see your log file, so get a head start and follow these instructions to email them your log file.

## Preview Versions

Preview versions (formerly "community tests") are sneak-peaks of upcoming releases. These preview versions are works-in-progress and are made available so the community can help with feedback and testing. These preview features are subject to change, may contain bugs, and may have stability and performance issues.

**Note:** Any previously saved simulations or objects from officially released versions of Universe Sandbox that are loaded in preview versions may look or behave differently than expected. Similarly, any simulations or objects that are saved in a preview version of Universe Sandbox may look different when they are loaded in other versions of Universe Sandbox. If a saved simulation or object looks different than expected, you can open the simulation or object in the most recent version of Universe Sandbox and resave it.

To opt-in to preview versions when they are available:

1. Exit Universe Sandbox

2. Right-click on the game title in your Steam Library

3. Click on ‘Properties’

4. Select the ‘Betas’ tab

5. Set the dropdown menu to ‘!preview-version’

6. Close the Properties window

7. Steam will now update Universe Sandbox to the preview version

8. Once updated, launch Universe Sandbox
Explode Tool

The Explode Tool will destroy a selected object, removing it from the simulation and producing fragments. The explosion also produced a spherical wavefront that expands outwards with time. If this wavefront collides with another object in the simulation, the friction of the exploded material passing the object may trigger friction fragmentation.

If the selected object is a star, the Explode Tool will cause a supernova instead.

## Tool Details

### Location

The Explode button in located in the Tools menu in the bottom bar.

### Settings

* Detonation Delay
	+ If this is set to zero, an object will explode instantly when clicked with the Explode Tool. If the Detonation Delay is larger than zero, the explosion will occur after that amount of time has passed within the simulation.
* Auto Energy
	+ When on, Universe Sandbox will automatically calculate how much energy is released in the explosion and the speed of the fragments, based on the mass and escape velocity of the object.
	+ When off, the user can set the Explosion Energy and Fragment Speed.
* Explosion Energy
	+ The amount of kinetic energy released the explosion
* Fragment Speed
	+ The speed at which fragments are ejected in the explosion
Impact Power

The Impact Power property of an object represents the rate that energy from collisions is added to the object over time. Impact Power is a **read-only** property that is continually calculated by Universe Sandbox.

## Property Details

### Location

For Planetary Body object, the Impact Power property is located in the Energy Flow section of the object's Surface tab, when the Energy Absorption Rate property is expanded.

### Units

Impact Power can be viewed using the following units:

* Solar luminosity (L star) = 3.846×1026 W
* Watts (W) is the SI unit for luminosity.

## Simulation Effects

### Temperature

Impact Power is one of several sources of energy that can increase an object's Average Temperature. If the object is not currently experiencing a collision, the Impact Power will be zero.
Composition Tab

The Composition tab in an object's properties panel displays properties related to the materials that make up the interior of the object.

Unlike other tabs in the properties panel, which display an image of the object at the top of the panel, the Composition tab displays a cutaway view of the object, showing the layers of simulated materials in the object's interior.

* Material Composition
	+ Iron
	+ Silicate
	+ Water
	+ Hydrogen
* Cumulative Properties
	+ Mass
	+ Radius
	+ Density
	+ Volume
	+ Calculated Radius
	+ Surface Gravity
	+ Escape Velocity
	+ Age
	+ Mass Loss Rate
	+ Mass Loss Total
	+ Reset Mass Loss Total
* Comparisons
	+ Earth Similarity
	+ Life Likelihood
* Magnetic Fields
	+ Show Magnetosphere (Planetary Bodies only)
	+ Magnetosphere Size (Planetary Bodies only)
	+ Magnetic Field
	+ Show Magnetic Axis
	+ Magnetic Pole Angle
	+ Particle Jets (Neutron Stars and White Dwarfs only)
	+ Make Pulsar (Neutron Stars and White Dwarfs only)
Skreetle

**Skreetle** is a magnus in Re:Legend.

## Description

The claws and abdomen of the Skreetle is filled with life magic, this gives it a bright green glow.

## Abilities

 Magical Defense +10%

## Reference

* Kickstarter Update #47 Tiny Update: March Pick-A-Magnus Winner & Backer Alpha Keys Winner!

## Trivia

* Winner of the **Pick-a-Magnus March Update** minigame on Kickstarter after the campaign ended.
* Re:Legend - Magnus Lore Reveal #38 Skreetle - Steam News

## Gallery

← Elder Rollfin | **Skreetle** |  - →

**Magnus List**
Orbital Parent

The Orbital Parent of an object is the object in the simulation that the first object orbits. The Orbital Parent will usually be the object's Strongest Attractor, unless the object is more massive than its Strongest Attractor. If the object is the largest or only object in the simulation, it will have no Orbital Parent.

The orbital elements of an object are calculated based on the object's motion relative to its Orbital Parent. This is a **read-only** property, as Universe Sandbox automatically calculates an the object's Mass and Strongest Attractor.

## Property Details

### Location

The Orbital Parent, if it exists, is displayed at the top of the Orbital Elements section of the Motion tab (otherwise, text is displayed stating that this object has no Orbital Parent). It is also listed in the Impacting Objects section of the Motion tab. For Galaxy objects, the Orbital Parent property is located in the Properties section of the Galaxy tab, and refers specifically to the Black Hole's Orbital Parent. For Galaxy Nebula objects, the Orbital Parent property is located in the Motion section of the Nebula tab.

If the Relative to property is set to Orbital Parent, this property is also displayed directly under the Relative to property.

## Simulation Effect

### Gravity

The user cannot directly change an object's Orbital Parent. However, changing the mass of an object's Orbital Parent will change the object's orbital elements.
Orbital Elements

An object's orbit can be described with six properties, known as its orbital elements. These six properties include:

* the Semi-Major Axis, described the size of the orbit,
* the Eccentricity, describing the shape of the orbit,
* the Inclination, describing the the tilt of the orbit,
* the Argument of Pericenter and
* the Longitude of the Ascending Node, two angles describing the orientation of the orbit in space, and
* either the True Anomaly or the Mean Anomaly, both of which describe the object's position along its orbit.

The orbital elements are calculated relative to the object's Orbital Parent.

As an alternative to the orbital elements, an object's location and motion in 3D space can also be described with six other properties: the x, y, z components of its Position Vector and the x, y, z components of its Velocity Vector.
Actions Tab

The Actions tab in an object's properties panel displays a number of actions that the user can take to affect the simulation or selected object.

* Save This Object - Saves the object as a new user object.
* Open User Objects Folder - Opens the folder of your User Objects.

* Replace Object - Replace the object with another new or different object.
* Delete Object - Deletes the object.
* Auto Orbit - Automatically orbit around a planet or star.
* Zero Velocity - Sets the objects velocity to zero; make the object still.

* Add Moons to Planet - Adds known moons to a planet.
* Add Planets to Star - Adds known planets or exoplanets to a star.
Optimize Simulation Speed for Temperature

The Optimize Simulation Speed for Temperature action will set the current Target Simulation Speed to the Temperature Stable Simulation Speed, increasing the stability and accuracy of the surface temperature simulation.

## Property Details

### Location

The Optimize Simulation Speed for Temperature button can be found in the Advanced Simulation section at the bottom of the Surface tab in the object's properties panel.
Transform Tool

The Transform Tool, called the Edit Tool in earlier versions of Universe Sandbox, allows the user to change the position, rotation, and velocity of one or more selected objects.

## Tool Details

### Location

The Transform button is located in the Tools menu. When clicked, the Transform Tool menu will appear with three settings: Move, Rotate, and Velocity. A sphere and rotation axis will be displayed for any selected objects while the Transform tool is active.

### Settings

The Transform settings determine which object properties will be changed.

* Move
	+ When selected, six arrows will appear around the transform sphere pointing along the axes of the Simulation Grid. These arrows can be dragged to move the object along each axis.
	+ At any time, whether or not Move is selected, the user can change the object's position by clicking and dragging the inner circle of the transform sphere.
* Rotate
	+ When selected, three circles (in blue, green, and red) will appear around the transform sphere, each corresponding to the object's rotation about one of the axes of the Simulation Grid. The circles can be dragged to rotate the object in each direction.
	+ At any time, whether or not Rotate is selected, the user can change the object's rotation by clicking and dragging the transform sphere.
* Velocity
	+ When selected, an arrow will appear on the edit sphere, pointing in the direction of the object's Velocity Vector. Clicking and dragging this arrow will change the direction (but not the magnitude) of the Velocity Vector.

## Simulation Effects

### Orbits

Changing the position or velocity of an object will alter its orbital elements and motion through the simulation.

### Rotation

Changing the rotation axis of an object may affect its surface temperatures as well as its orientation in space.
Elevation Appearance

The Elevation Appearance control contains settings for the on-screen appearance of an object's elevation.

The checkbox on the left of the control determines whether the object's elevation is displayed, rather than simply displaying a flat surface.

## Property Details

### Location

The Elevation Appearance control is located in the Layers section of the Visuals tab of an object's properties panel.

### Settings

#### Edit Data

The Edit Data button will open the Elevation section of the Surface Tab, providing access to the simulation properties related to elevation.

#### Exaggerated Terrain

This setting can be used to artificially increase or decrease the visibility of the object's surface elevation. An Exaggerated Terrain of 1.0 represented accurate terrain visuals.
Total Ice Mass

Total Ice Mass indicates the total mass of water present on the object's surface in the solid phase. This property is **read-only** and is automatically calculated by Universe Sandbox.

## Property Details

### Location

The Total Ice Mass property of an object is located in the Water section of the Surface tab in the object's properties panel.

### Units

Total Ice Mass can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Milky Way Galaxy mass (milky way) = 1.5×1012 sun
* Solar mass (sun) = 1.9891×1030 kg
* Jupiter mass (jupiter) = 1.8986×1027 kg
* Earth mass (earth) = 5.97219×1024 kg
* Moon mass (moon) = 7.349×1022 kg
* Earth ocean mass (ocean) = 1.4×1021 kg
* Earth atmosphere mass (atmosphere) = 5.158×1018 kg
* Kilogram (kg) is the SI base unit for mass
* Gram (g) = 1×10-3 kg
* Milligram (mg) = 1×10-6 kg
Pericenter Distance

The Pericenter Distance of an object's orbit is the distance from its Orbital Parent to the pericenter, or closest point, of the orbit. The Pericenter Distance of an object with a circular orbit is equal to its Semi-Major Axis.

The pericenter of an object orbiting the Sun is sometimes referred to as the **perihelion**, while the pericenter of an object orbiting the Earth is sometimes called the **perigee**. Pericenter is also synonymous with **periapse**, although this term usually refers to the pericenter distance rather than the pericenter point.

## Property Details

### Location

The Pericenter Distance property is located near the top of the Orbital Elements section of the Motion tab in an object's properties panel, if the object has an Orbital Parent. It is a lockable property with Semi-Major Axis, Apocenter Distance, and Eccentricity.

### Units

Pericenter Distance can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Milky Way Galaxy radius (milky way) = 5.5×104 light year
* Parsec (parsec) = 3.08568025×1016 m
* Light-year (light year) = 9.46073047×1015 m
* Astronomical Unit (AU) = 1.495978707×1011 m
* Solar radius (sun) = 6.955×108 m
* Lunar distance (lunar dist) = 3.844×108 m
* Light-second (light sec) = 2.99792458×108 m
* Jupiter radius (jupiter) = 6.9911×107 m
* Earth radius (earth) = 6.37101×106 m
* Moon radius (moon) = 1.7371×106 m
* Kilometer (km) = 1000 m
* Meter (m) is the SI base unit for length
* Centimeter (cm) = 0.01 m
* Millimeter (mm) = 0.001 m
Galaxy

A Galaxy in Universe Sandbox is a group of simulated objects, specifically Galaxy Nebula objects orbiting a Black Hole, that together represent an actual galaxy, or a new galaxy created by the user. A galaxy is a collection of stars, gas, and dust bound together by gravity, often with a supermassive black hole at the center. In Universe Sandbox, the structure and motion of the stars, gas, and dust in a galaxy is simulated by the motion of Galaxy Nebulae around the Black Hole.

The properties panel for a Galaxy object will include only a Galaxy tab.

## Database

The Universe Sandbox database includes over 500 galaxies, sourced from the Extragalactic Database
Stellar Prominence

A stellar prominence is a bright extension of gas from the surface of a star. The frequency at which prominences appear and the length of time that a prominence lasts depend on the mass and age of the star.

## Related Properties & Settings

### Settings

* Stellar prominences can be turned off using the Stellar Prominences toggle in the full Sim Settings Menu. The average Prominence Frequency and Prominence Duration can also be scaled in this section.

## Models

The frequency of a stellar prominence in Universe Sandbox is randomly chosen from a normal distribution with a mean value that depends on the star's mass and age. The mean value will be between once every hour and once every six hours. This mean value may also be scaled using the Prominence Frequency setting in the Sim Settings Menu.

The half-life of a prominence is randomly chosen between 20 second and 5 hours. The prominences are randomly positioned around the star's surface.
Magnetosphere Size

The Magnetosphere Size property represents the size of an object's magnetosphere, the region of space where particles will be affected by the object's magnetic field.

The size of the magnetosphere, *R*mag, sometimes called the Chapman-Ferraro distance, is calculated relative to the object's radius, *R*, using

R

m
a
g

R

=

(

B
2

μ
0

P

)

1

/

6

.

{\displaystyle \frac{R\_{mag}}{R} = \left(\frac{B^2}{\mu\_0 P}\right)^{1/6}.}

where *B* is the strength of the magnetic field, *P* is the total stellar wind pressure, and μ0 us the vacuum permeability constant,

μ
0

=
4
π
×

10

−
7

N

/

A
2

.

{\displaystyle \mu\_0 = 4\pi \times 10^{-7}~\mathrm{N/A^2}. }

## Property Details

### Location

The Magnetosphere Size property is located in the Magnetic Fields section at the end of the Composition tab in the object's properties panel. This property will only be visible for Planetary Body objects.

### Units

Magnetosphere Size can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Milky Way Galaxy radius (milky way) = 5.5×104 light year
* Parsec (parsec) = 3.08568025×1016 m
* Light-year (light year) = 9.46073047×1015 m
* Astronomical Unit (AU) = 1.495978707×1011 m
* Solar radius (sun) = 6.955×108 m
* Lunar distance (lunar dist) = 3.844×108 m
* Light-second (light sec) = 2.99792458×108 m
* Jupiter radius (jupiter) = 6.9911×107 m
* Earth radius (earth) = 6.37101×106 m
* Moon radius (moon) = 1.7371×106 m
* Kilometer (km) = 1000 m
* Meter (m) is the SI base unit for length
* Centimeter (cm) = 0.01 m
* Millimeter (mm) = 0.001 m

## Simulation Effects

The value of the Magnetosphere Size property will affect the size of the displayed magnetosphere when the Show Magnetosphere toggle is on. If the magnetosphere is smaller than the object itself (i.e., Magnetosphere Size is less than 1), the magnetosphere will not be visible.
Planetscaping Tool

The Planetscaping Tool allows direct editing of an object's surface properties using the cursor. This includes adding, removing, or changing the state of any phase of water on the surface, adding or removing elevation, and increasing or decreasing temperature. The affected area on the surface is indicated by a circle around the cursor.

## Tool Details

### Location

The Planetscaping button is located in the Tools menu in the bottom bar.

### Settings

The Planetscaping settings menu has two parts: on the left is a panel showing the different surface properties that can be edited with the tool, including:

* Temperature,
* Elevation,
* Water Vapor,
* Liquid Water, and
* Ice.

The panel on the right includes tabs at the top allowing you to select different Planetscaping modes. The rest of the panel shows settings based on the selected surface property and mode. Possible modes and their settings include:

* **Add/Remove** will increase or decrease the value or amount of the selected property as you hold down the tool while the cursor is over the object's surface.
	+ **Change Rate** (such as Pressure Change when Water Vapor is selected) sets how fast the value will change over time
	+ **Radius** represents the size of the affected area on the surface
	+ **Auto Radius** will set the Radius value based on the object's size
	+ **Smoothness** will determine how sharply the effect will drop off at the edge of the affected area. A Smoothness of zero creates a sharper edge, while a Smoothness of one creates a smoother edge.
* **Set** will set the value or amount of the selected property to an exact value.
	+ **Value** (in Temperature, Depth, or Pressure units) indicates the value to set the property to. The eyedropper button to the left of the input text box will allow you to sample the value at a given point on the surface by clicking on the surface. This will automatically fill in the value.
	+ **Radius** represents the size of the affected area on the surface
	+ **Auto Radius** will set the Radius value based on the object's size
	+ **Smoothness** will determine how sharply the effect will drop off at the edge of the affected area. A Smoothness of zero creates a sharper edge, while a Smoothness of one creates a smoother edge.
* **Vaporize/Freeze/Melt** will change the water in the affected area to the indicate phase
	+ **Radius** represents the size of the affected area on the surface
	+ **Auto Radius** will set the Radius value based on the object's size
Fragmentation

Certain effects in Universe Sandbox will cause an object to break apart, producing fragments. These effects include:

* Collision fragmentation, which occurs when objects collide with enough energy
* Roche fragmentation, which occurs when an object is torn apart by tidal forces
* Friction fragmentation, which occurs when a nearby explosion blasts fragments off an object

## Related Properties & Settings

### Settings

* All fragmentation can be turned off using the Fragment toggle in the Sim menu in the bottom bar, or using the the Sim Settings Menu#Create Fragments toggle in the full Sim Settings Menu.
* Individual types of fragmentation can also be toggled on and off in the Sim Settings menu.

## Models

Whenever collision, Roche, or friction fragmentation is triggered, Fragment objects are produced. The number of fragments created is automatically calculated by Universe Sandbox based on performance limitations. The location, mass, and velocity of each fragment is chosen randomly from a distribution determined by the type of fragmentation in order to conserve mass, momentum, and energy.

## Limitations

The number of fragments produced is limited by performance, as increasing the number of objects in a simulation will require more computational power.
Longitude of the Ascending Node

The Longitude of the Ascending Node of an object's orbit is the angle between the orbit's ascending node (the point where the object crosses from below some reference plane to above the reference plane) and a reference direction. In Universe Sandbox, the reference plane is the x-z plane of the Simulation Grid, and the reference direction is the negative x-axis.

For an object orbiting in the reference plane (with an Inclination of zero), the Longitude of the Ascending Node will be undefined and the property will be **read-only**.

Longitude of the Ascending Node is one of six orbital elements that describe an object's orbit.

## Property Details

### Location

The Longitude of the Ascending Node property is located in the Orbital Elements section of the Motion tab of an object's properties panel, if that object has an Orbital Parent.

### Units

Longitude of the Ascending Node is an angle, and can be viewed or edited using the following units:

* Radians (rad)
* Degrees (°) = (180/π) rad

Longitude of the Ascending Node is defined in the range 0-360°, or 0-2π rad.
Heating Rate

The Heating Rate represents the estimated rate at which the object's Average Temperature or Surface Temperature is changing, based on the total flow of energy into and out of the object.

The Heating Rate is a **read-only** property that is continually calculated by Universe Sandbox using

R

h
e
a
t

=
(

P

a
b
s

−

P

r
a
d

)

/

C
.

{\displaystyle R\_{heat}=(P\_{abs}-P\_{rad})/C.}

where *Pabs* is the Energy Absorption Rate, *Prad* is the Energy Radiation Rate, and *C* is the Surface Heat Capacity.

## Property Details

### Location

For Planetary Body objects, the Heating Rate property can be found in the Energy Flow section of the Surface tab. For Stars, Black Holes, Fragments, and Human-Scale Objects, the Heating Rate property can be found in the Temperature tab.

### Units

Heating Rate can be viewed using the following units:

* Kelvin per second (K/s) uses the SI units for temperature and time.
* Kelvin per minute (K/min) = 1.6667×10-2 K/s
* Kelvin per hour (K/h) = 2.7778×10-4 K/s
* Kelvin per day (K/d) = 3.8×10-7 K/s
* Kelvin per year (K/y) = 3.1688×10-8 K/s
Materials

Most objects in Universe Sandbox have a simulated composition, a list of materials that make up the object and their relative amounts. The composition of an object will affect its temperature, appearance, and other simulated characteristics.

Currently, four materials are simulated by Universe Sandbox:

* Iron
	+ The densest of the materials, Iron is displayed at an object's core in the cutaway view at the top of the Composition tab.
* Silicate
	+ Represents rock, and is the second-most dense of the materials.
* Water
	+ The second-least dense material
* Hydrogen
	+ The least dense material, Hydrogen is the top later in the cutaway view at the top of the Composition tab. Star objects are composed of 100% Hydrogen.
* Argon
* Hydrogen
	+ The least dense material, Hydrogen is the top later in the cutaway view at the top of the Composition tab. Star objects are composed of 100% Hydrogen.

## Related Properties & Settings

### Properties

* Each material is listed in the Material Composition section at the top of the Composition tab of an object's properties panel. For each material, the total mass of that material is displayed, as well as its relative amount compared to the other materials, in the form of a percentage. The percentage of all the materials in an object will always add to 100%.

## Trivia

* Organics & Carbon Dioxide were materials that existed in prior versions on Universe Sandbox, but have been removed.
* In the May 2022 Blog, it's stated the Universe Sandbox developers are planning on adding new materials to the game, such as Carbon Dioxide, Helium and Methane. It's also stated that Methane will be used to simulate methane lakes such as the ones on Titan in real life.
Spin Fragmentation

The material that makes up a spinning object experiences a centrifugal force that works against the force of gravity. If the object spins fast enough, this force can pull the object apart, ripping away fragments or even completely destroying the body. This effect is included in Universe Sandbox as of Update 30.

## Related Properties & Settings

### Settings

* The production of all fragments can be turned off using the Fragment toggle in the Sim menu in the bottom bar, or using the Create Fragments toggle in the full Sim Settings Menu. Spin fragmentation (as opposed to collision fragmentation or friction fragmentation) can be individually controlled in the Sim Settings Menu.
* The maximum spin rate of an object depends on its mass and density, as well as the simulation's gravity value.

### Models

An object will begin to fragment once its Angular Speed is larger than its maximum spin rate, which depends on the object's mass and density, as well as the value for gravity in the simulation. One the angular speed reaches three times the maximum spin rate, the object will completely disintegrate into fragments; at smaller angular speeds, a smaller remnant object will be left behind.

1. ↑ See: Holsapple, Keith A. Spin limits of Solar System bodies: From the small fast-rotators to 2003 EL61. *Icarus*.
Selected Cell Liquid Water Depth

The Liquid Water Depth property indicates the depth of the liquid water in the selected cell.

## Property Details

### Location

The Liquid Water Depth property is located in the Selected Grid Cell section of the Surface tab in the object's properties panel.

### Units

Liquid Water Depth can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Milky Way Galaxy radius (milky way) = 5.5×104 light year
* Parsec (parsec) = 3.08568025×1016 m
* Light-year (light year) = 9.46073047×1015 m
* Astronomical Unit (AU) = 1.495978707×1011 m
* Solar radius (sun) = 6.955×108 m
* Lunar distance (lunar dist) = 3.844×108 m
* Light-second (light sec) = 2.99792458×108 m
* Jupiter radius (jupiter) = 6.9911×107 m
* Earth radius (earth) = 6.37101×106 m
* Moon radius (moon) = 1.7371×106 m
* Kilometer (km) = 1000 m
* Meter (m) is the SI base unit for length
* Centimeter (cm) = 0.01 m
* Millimeter (mm) = 0.001 m
Eccentricity

The Eccentricity of an object's orbit represents how circular the orbit is. Eccentricity cannot be negative, and higher Eccentricity values indicate a more elongated orbit. The value of the Eccentricity property will also determine the type of orbit or trajectory:

* Eccentricity = 0: circular
* 0 < Eccentricity < 1: elliptical
* Eccentricity = 1: parabolic
* Eccentricity > 1: hyperbolic

Eccentricity is one of the six orbital elements that described an object's orbit.

## Property Details

### Location

The Eccentricity property is located in the Orbital Elements section of the Motion tab of an object's properties panel, if that object has an Orbital Parent.

### Units

The Eccentricity property has no units, as eccentricity is a dimensionless parameter.
Galaxy Type

The Galaxy Type property categorizes the 3D structure of the galaxy. In Universe Sandbox, these categories are roughly based on the Hubble sequence.

There are three general types of galaxies in Universe Sandbox: spiral galaxies, elliptical galaxies, and irregular galaxies. Spiral and elliptical galaxies are further divided into subcategories based on their shape.

## Property Details

### Location

The Galaxy Type property is located near the end of the Properties section of the Galaxy tab in the galaxy's properties panel.
Displayed Orbit

An object with an Orbital Parent will have an orbit or trajectory indicating its path through 3D space based on its Orbital Elements. This orbit can be displayed on-screen. The orbit or trajectory may change with time as other objects affect the object's motion via gravity, or as the user changes the object's position, velocity, and orbital elements.

## Related Settings

### Show Orbits

To toggle the displayed orbits on and off, the user use the O hotkey, the Orbits toggle in the View menu in the bottom bar, or the Orbits toggle in the full View Settings Menu. If displayed orbits are turned on for the simulation, the orbit for an individual object can be toggled on or off using the Orbit toggle in the Visuals tab of the object's properties panel.
Gravitational Constant

The Gravitational Constant is a simulation setting that affects the strength of the force of gravity for all objects in the simulation.

## Setting Details

### Location

The Gravitational Constant setting is located under Gravity in Sim menu on the bottom bar. It can also be found in the full Sim Settings Menu.

### Units

Gravitational Constant can be viewed and edited using the following units:

* Newtons times Meters per Kilograms Squared (N(m/kg)2) is expressed in SI units
* Actual Gravitational Constant (G) = 6.6740831×10-11 N(m/kg)2

## Simulation Effects

### Gravity

The force of gravity between two objects in a simulation depends on the masses of the objects, *M*1 and *M*2, the distance between the objects, *d*, and the gravitational constant, *G*, by the following equation:

# F
G

M
1

M
2

d
2

.

{\displaystyle F = G\frac{M\_1 M\_2}{d^2}. }

Increasing the Gravitational Constant will increase this force, causing objects in the simulation to affect each others' motion more strongly.