Spacecraft motion in 6DoF
Run translational and rotational spacecraft dynamics with propulsion, fuel, reference frames, and attitude propagation.
OPEN-SOURCE SPACEFLIGHT SIMULATION
Understand, control, and analyze spacecraft motion.
Spaceflight Dynamics Framework (SDF) is a modular C++/Qt simulation framework for spacecraft dynamics, propulsion, guidance, control, and engineering telemetry.
It turns the complete path from spacecraft configuration and control input to physical motion and recorded telemetry into an inspectable, modifiable engineering environment.
C++Qt6DoFGNCTelemetryOpen Source
Current application footage. The demo asset will be replaced as the UI evolves.
A simulation framework built for engineering work
SDF is not a fixed lunar-landing demo. The lunar scenario is the current proving ground for a reusable spacecraft simulation architecture.
Guidance and control
Build and test manual control, controllers, autopilot logic, and physically modeled main-engine and RCS actuation.
Models and configurations
Define spacecraft in JSON, exchange subsystem models, and use the modular C++ architecture as an engineering testbed.
Engineering telemetry
Inspect simulation state in the cockpit and export recorded telemetry to XML for validation and post-processing.
WHY SDF?
Make the simulation understandable, not just executable.
Physics you can inspect
Dynamics, propulsion, coordinate systems, control, numerical integration, and telemetry are explicit software components rather than a black box.
Built for experimentation
Spacecraft configurations and simulation subsystems are separated so the framework can evolve with new models, controllers, scenarios, and research questions.
Engineering data, not just visuals
The cockpit is one consumer of the simulation. Recorded telemetry and XML export make the same simulation useful for verification and post-processing.
SEE IT IN CONTEXT
One framework, several engineering viewpoints
6DoF
SPACECRAFT DYNAMICS
Translation, rotation, attitude, and frames
Propagate a rigid-body spacecraft state while keeping inertial, lunar-fixed, landing-site-relative, orbital, and body-frame representations available to the subsystems that need them.
Explore the architecture →GNC
GUIDANCE & CONTROL
From command to physical response
Manual commands, automated control, main-engine thrust, and RCS actuation interact with the same physics core rather than bypassing the vehicle model.
Follow the runtime data flow →XML
TELEMETRY & ANALYSIS
Turn a simulation run into inspectable data
Runtime telemetry feeds the Qt cockpit and can be recorded and exported for later analysis, debugging, and systematic verification work.
See the simulation frontend →WHO IS IT FOR?
For people who want to look inside the simulation
Students & Engineers
Inspect how spacecraft dynamics, coordinate frames, propulsion, control, and software architecture work together.
GNC & Simulation Developers
Prototype controllers, spacecraft configurations, physical models, and verification scenarios in a transparent simulation stack.
Open-Source Contributors
Contribute to a real C++/Qt aerospace project with separated subsystems, explicit interfaces, tests, and public engineering documentation.
SDF TODAY
Pre-release, with the 6DoF core in place.
Development is currently focused on release readiness and systematic verification of the simulation core before the first lightweight public release.
- Status
- Pre-release development
- Core
- 6DoF spacecraft dynamics
- Current focus
- Verification & release readiness
- Project model
- Open-source C++ / Qt
Go deeper
Use the technical pages when you want implementation detail.