Update

Run Steam to download Update 28.2, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 28.2

Stars have new Absolute and Apparent Magnitude properties, which measure their brightness from different distances. This minor update also includes improvements to black hole collisions, object trails, and bug fixes.

Stellar Magnitudes

Stars now have both Apparent and Absolute Magnitude properties, which are measures of the brightness of a star, under Properties > Temperature. Learn more in our new Stellar Magnitudes guide: Guides > Science > Stellar Magnitudes.

More Highlights

• Colliding black holes now compute the correct Schwarzschild radius

• Trails for objects are no longer broken and jagged when an object is set as the trail center

• Starlight color on nearby objects now updates in real-time

• Human scale objects are now simply heated by stars and supernovae to better reflect their temperature in space

• Created a new guide about object oblateness and its effect on gravitational fields under: Guides > Science > Non-Spherical Gravitational Fields

This update includes 3+ additions and 13+ fixes and improvements.

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 28.2

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 28.1, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 28.1

We’ve improved the “Realistic” Object Visibility setting to better reflect the sensitivity of the human eye to object brightness and colors. We also added a new “Enhanced” Object Visibility, improved collision detection, smoothed out habitable zones, added bug fixes, and more!

Realistic Object Visibility

The “Realistic” Object Visibility setting now shows objects fading in and out with adjusted colors tuned to what the human eye would see. Learn more in our guide, Limits of Human Eyes.

Smoother Habitable Zones

The habitable zone now smoothly changes size for stars of all luminosities, including very hot, bright stars like Rigel. Check it out under View > Habitable.

More Highlights

• “Enhanced” has been added as an Object Visibility option, which removes rim lighting from objects while keeping them always visible

• Collision detection has been further improved as part of our continued work to make collisions even better

• We’ve added a satellite to our human-scale objects

• Created simulation of ESA and JAXA’s BepiColombo spacecraft flyby of Mercury in October 2021: Open > Historical > BepiColombo Flyby of Mercury in 2021

• Open, Guides, and Workshop panels can now be pinned open, allowing for much easier simulation browsing

• The View Settings panel has been reorganized for better clarity and usability

This update includes 6+ additions and 12+ fixes and improvements.

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 28.1

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 28, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 28

Fire Ring introduces a collision model that simulates an impact shockwave across the surface of an object, as part of our work to continuously improve collisions. In addition, there are improvements to object trails, additional object information, bug fixes, and more.

Shocking Collisions

Object heating from impacts now realistically moves over the impacted object as a shockwave. Fragments are ejected from the edge of the shockwave at more realistic angles. Learn more in our Collisions guides:
Guides > Tutorials > Planetary Collisions
Guides > Science > Collisions: Energy, Mass, and Speed

Impactor Heating

Both objects involved in a collision now experience collisional heating on their surfaces, instead of just the larger object.

More Highlights

• Grazing collisions now look more realistic with shockwaves and surface dragging

This update includes 6+ additions and 22+ fixes and improvements.

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 28

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 27.2, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 27.2

You can now change specific simulation interactions, like gravity and collisions, on a per-object basis! This minor update also includes simulated atmosphere opacity (a measure of how hard it is to see through the atmosphere), bug fixes, and more.

Individual Object Simulation Manipulation

The ability to turn off specific simulation interactions on a per-object basis has been added to all objects in Properties > Overview. We plan to add to this over time, and we hope you enjoy creating all kinds of crazy scenarios with these options as much as we do!

Opaque Atmospheres

Atmosphere Opacity is now simulated based on an object’s properties, like Radius and Atmosphere Mass. Learn more about this new feature in our Atmospheres guide under Guides > Science > Atmospheres.

More Highlights

• Polar ice caps on random rocky planets are now informed by the water depth around the poles and are no longer circles

• Opening multiple surface data views no longer causes a noticeable reduction in performance

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 27.2

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 27.1, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 27.1

Cloud speed is now simulated based on an object’s temperature and rotation speed. Surface simulation performance improvements, an Appearance interface redesign, adjustable planetary rim lighting, and more round out this minor update.

The feature image shows a laser heating up the Earth to speed up the cloud rotation and our new atmosphere opacity property.

Simulated Cloud Speed

Cloud speed is now simulated based on an object’s temperature and rotation speed as part of our continued incremental improvements of clouds. Check out our new Clouds guide for a tour through our entire cloud system: Guides > Science > Clouds.

Easier Appearance Editing

As part of our continued user interface improvements, the Properties > Appearance tab has been redesigned to combine color customization with visibility and other options to make changing the appearance of an object even easier.

More Highlights

• Surface Simulation has been improved to update only objects that are changing each frame, improving performance for simulations with many objects

• Created simulation of NASA’s Juno spacecraft flyby of Ganymede in June 2021: Open > Historical > Juno Flyby of Ganymede in 2021

• Star glows correctly fade as you get farther away from them when Object Visibility is set to Realistic again

• Added Atmosphere Density and Speed of Sound Properties to Properties > Surface > Atmosphere

• Rim Lighting can now be adjusted under View > Object Visibility > Rim Lighting

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 27.1

You can also check out our 2021 Roadmap to learn more about what we’re currently working on!

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 27, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 27

Snow simulation improvements, more detailed temperature maps, better performance, new cloud visuals, and more are rolled up into Update 27.

The featured image shows what would happen if the Earth was tidally locked, where one side of the planet always faces the Sun.

Superior Snow Simulation

We’re now keeping track of snow so that it falls and melts more realistically. Previously it disappeared immediately if the water vapor got too low. There’s also more accurate snow and ice formations on newly-created random rocky planets!

Taking the (Surface) Temperature

Temperature maps have gotten a facelift with the addition of temperature calculations adjusted by elevation. Previously temperature maps were only shown at sea level, even if the elevation data was above sea level.

Downscaling to Benefit Non-gaming Hardware

Render Scale has been added as a new graphics setting. This allows you to run the simulation at a lower resolution while keeping the interface looking crisp. The automatic settings have also been updated for improved performance on lower-end hardware.

More Highlights

• More customization for cloud visuals on rocky planets, including adjustable coverage and opacity

• We’ve added new shapes to our Human Scale Objects
• …and Human Scale Objects can now have custom colors

• View > Object Visibility has been added so that you can see all objects that would normally be impossible to see at realistic scales. You can also really blow them up with advanced settings!

• The Add Panel has been restyled to accommodate smaller screens and to prepare the panel for future plans

• Heating from stars and supernovae is now smoother at high simulation speeds for all spinning objects

• Our guide system now provides better assistance to new users with Guide Rails

• Curved trails are now more precisely rendered as at high simulation speeds

• Dyslexia-friendly font options have been added under Settings > General > Accessibility

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 27

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 26.3, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 26.3

Drastically increased collision fragments and framerates, overhauled planetary water distribution, plus dozens of improvements come together in Update 26.3.

Oceans Filling Like a Bathtub

Water fills a tub from its lowest point – why not on a planet? Oceans now start at the lowest elevations and fill valleys like you would a bathtub, creating more realistic-looking continents and oceans. (Previously liquid water would “precipitate” evenly across the surface.)

Buttery Smooth Collisions & Particles Aplenty

Major performance improvements have resulted in epic collisions with double the particles. Fragment generation is substantially more consistent across various simulation speeds. Collisions now perform much more smoothly: in many cases, we’re seeing as much as triple framerate increases.

More Highlights

• Fixed the “annoying bug” that darkened customized planet surfaces
• Ice & Snow, which are simulated separately, now have color options
• Avast, Matey! Change an object’s Sea Level in the properties panel
• Cleaned up the object property panel and added new action buttons

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 26.3

 

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 26.2, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 26.2

Craters from impacts, lasting surface damage, and voluminous explosions all come together in Update 26.2 to close out the year!

Surface Damage & Craters

Molten and heated areas on an object’s surface will appear scorched after cooling, with visible craters in the aftermath of collisions.

Explosions

Rocky objects more accurately vaporize into hot, dense gas clouds when exploded. The simulation of gas particles, which slowly expand over time, is more realistic, and results in dramatic debris clouds after impacts. We’ve also added a Detonation Delay setting to the Explode tool.

Two-Handed Gestures in VR

Move, scale, and rotate the universe using intuitive gestures with both hands and the grip buttons.

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 26.2

 

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Run Steam to download Update 26.1, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Brown Dwarf Transitions

We’ve made significant improvements to the simulated transitions of gas giants into brown dwarfs and stars, driven by a newly simulated Fusion Power energy property. Learn more about fusion power and brown dwarfs in our new guide: Guides > Science > Are Gas Giants Failed Stars? 

More Color Customization

The color of water on all planets, and the color of vegetation on Earth, are now customizable via Properties > Appearance.

Laser Improvements

Laser presets have been reorganized, and we’ve added a new Push Water setting in the Laser panel. While not entirely realistic, this is a fun way to play with the water simulation on an object’s surface. Try out the “Wave Maker” laser preset to create massive waves in a planet’s oceans..

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 26.1

Run Steam to download Update 26, or buy Universe Sandbox via our website or the Steam Store.

Update 26 brings the full Universe Sandbox desktop experience to virtual reality (VR). We redesigned the bottom bar and made visual improvements to collision fragments, rocky planets, and liquid water.

Full Desktop Experience in VR

Universe Sandbox VR now matches the desktop experience and will maintain feature parity moving forward. You can now use virtual hands to manipulate planets, edit properties, or use separate tools in each hand.

Reimagined User Interface

Featuring a customizable bottom bar, our improved user interface makes Universe Sandbox easier to use, more discoverable, and improves support for extra small screens.

Improved Visuals

Collision fragments have new, high-definition graphics and lighting. Elevation maps for rocky planets have more detail. Water graphics now show waves and better light reflection. Asteroids and collision fragments have new highly-detailed dynamic models with better lighting.

This update includes 20+ additions and 50+ fixes and improvements.

Please report any issues on our Steam forum, on Discord, or in-game via Home > Send Feedback.

Check out the full list of What’s New in Update 26