Reentry - A Space Flight Simulator News

This small update is mainly a bug fix patch with a few new features. I have continued to fix issues reported by the community, and issues I have discovered as I create some new content for the game. In addition, I have created a new feature to slightly illuminate the cockpit depending on where the sun is relative to the cockpit windows.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this build you can roll back to the previous using the Steam Betas Tab accessible from the Steam client (games properties).

Cockpit Internal Ambient Light
I have added a new feature that will add some ambient light into the cockpit, around the windows where sunlight gets through. This feature is available in Graphics: Ultimate only due to the requirement of rendering multiple additional lights in the cockpit.

This feature prevents the cockpit from getting fully dark even if sun light shines through the windows of the space craft.

In the images below, all the internal cockpit lights has been turned off:



Updated Flashlight Cookie
I have updated the flash light cookie to create a more realistic mask when looking around the cockpit with the flash light.


Configure Cockpit Switches through an API
I have started to test a new feature that allows the game to configure panels through an API. This uses UDP, and will allow external applications to set panel switches and press buttons. I will soon release a new GitHub repo where an example client + domain models can configure the panels while Reentry is running.

This is mainly to allow external devices such as an AGC to press buttons without having to bind input as a joystick, and for 3rd parties to create small panels and switches that can be used to control Reentry, such as an SCE to AUX switch, or maybe some more used switches to configure attitude modes etc.

This is step 1 and is currently in testing with a few developers, feel free to join us in the Reentry Discord server.

An example of this is a DSKY that can interact with the AGC/LGC DSKYs in Reentry:
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

More information about this project and how you can build one can be found here:
https://github.com/Apollo-Simulation-Peripheral-Lab/DSKY


TB6/TLI and the SII Sep and Uplink Act light
I have fixed an issue where the SII Sep and Uplink Act light would extinguish too early, preventing the crew to use the lights to start the Mission Timer at TLI T -9:00 minutes.



Patch Notes:

• Added some logic that creates an ambient light based on window orientation and size relative to the sun, to prevent a cockpit being completely dark even if the sun shines through the window
  
• Updated the Flashlight cookie
  
• LM RCS min impulse updates
  
• CM and LM system tuning
  
• Fixes related to saving and loading CM and LM orientation and rates
  
• Fixes related to storing CO2 levels in save state
  
• UDP testing to allow external applications set switches and push buttons. This will allow external devices control switch positions in the cockpits.
  
• TLI Pad text corrections
  
• Campaign 3, Set Sail updates
  
• Campaign 3, Loss of signals updates
  
• Big update to the Mission system to be able to create more complicated and detailed missions in the future
  
• Updated the logic related to SII Sep and Uplink Act light and TB6, making it possible to time DET start with the light
  
• Apollo Ascent>Boost checklist update
  

This is a patch combined with hot fix, where multiple issues in the Apollo Guidance Computer and general fixes as reported by the community has been addressed. It also fixes a blocking issue introduced after the previous patch where the Mercury Earth Renderer would crash (resulting in a white cloudy Earth) for players using the LOW (16k) Earth Texture resolution instead of the 64k texture pack.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this build you can roll back to the previous using the Steam Betas Tab accessible from the Steam client (games properties).

Earth Renderer crash
The white Earth reported by some players was due to the Earth renderer crashing while using the LOW/16k Earth texture pack instead of the 64k Earth texture pack. This would lead to a white cloudy sphere below your space craft with strange artifacts during the night. This has now been patched and should work again.


This image shows how Earth looked during the crash:


Mission Objectives view hot key
I added a bindable key to the mission objectives view. It is by default bounded to C (same as the Comm/function key), but can now be decoupled from this. In my case I have bound it to O and can now view this without also cluttering the screen with the comms view.



AGC: OPR ERR during V37E
Sometimes, if you had a NOUN set when calling V37E, you would get an OPR ERR. The work around was to always go to P00 before calling a new program. This has now been fixed.

V49E - Auto maneuver procedures
The routine loaded by V49E has been updated and is now using a similar logic to the P40 auto maneuvering routine. The general procedure for maneuvering into a burn attitude is to first call V49E to maneuver into the burn attitude, followed by V37E 40E (P40).


During V49E you will now need to press ENTR during V50 to nominally exit the routine. Pressing PRO will re-start the auto maneuver and return to V50 when complete.

V49E will first ask you for the target attitude, followed by V50. Pressing PRO will display V06 during the maneuver. Once the maneuver is complete, V50 will display again. Pressing PRO will start the maneuver again (V06) while ENTR will complete the routine.

I also added a runnable checklist for V49E.

C&W power updates
I have updated the power logic related the the Command Modules Caution & Warning system to behave more realistically when powering it off using the power switch (can be set to 1, OFF or 2) instead of just the circuit breakers.


AGC input
When inserting data into R1,R2,R3 of the AGC, input exceeding the 5 digits will simply be dropped instead of triggering a warning.

Also corrected V66E, V45E, V46E to remove themselves after being executed.

The AGC and LGC has also received a minor overhaul related to the font used to render the DSKY warning lights.


Master Alarm preventing time scale
Master Alarm preventing time scale has caused a lot of bug reports. This has now become a setting and you can enable/disable this from the Realism page under Main Menu -> Settings.

Career tree wrongly showing campaign missions as completed
The career tree has had an issue where some campaign missions would be rendered as completed, without actually completing them. A fix has been applied.


Patch notes:

• Fixed: Mercury Earth renderer crashing, leaving just a white cloudy Earth (16k resolution Earth only, 64k worked as normal)
  
• Fixed: V37 while Noun set throws OPR ERR
  
• Improved V49E to follow more realistic procedures, similar to P40 -> Remember to call V49E before P40
  
• Updated and added the RUN feature to V49 checklist
  
• Campaign 3 fixes related to V49
  
• Fixed so the AGC software drops key presses once the field is full instead of turning on OPER ERR
  
• Updates to the CM C&W system and power
  
• Fixed: Verbs like V66E, V45E, V46E, do not remove themselves from the VERB display on the DSKY after being executed.
  
• Added a bindable hot key for the mission objectives view
  
• Fixed an issue where Master alarm logic could prevent timescale
  
• Added an option under realism setting where you can toggle if Master Alarm should stop timescale in Apollo or not.
  
• Fixed campaign handling issues in the Career tree
  
• Updated AGC and LGC Warning Lights font
  
• CM Cryo tank temperature balancing (minor, internal)
  
• CM rates sensitivity (5 1 is 0.2 degree/tick)
  

This update will improve many of the in-game features and campaign flow. You will find improvements in the Orbit View, campaign flow, systems and procedures, and a lot of bug fixes.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this build you can roll back to the previous using the Steam Betas Tab accessible from the Steam client (games properties).

Wilhelmsen Studios changes its name to Lyra Creative
Let's face it, my surname is not ideal for a company name and I have been wanting to change the name of the company for many years. It's both long and hard to spell/pronounce for non-Norwegians.

The name Lyra (based on the constellation) has been the name of my game engine that Reentry has been built upon and was a natural choice for me.

The name change will be an ongoing process for the next few weeks as a lot of processes are in transition with both the government, Steam and assets.

NASA logos
After a long process with NASA, I have received permissions to use the NASA logos where they were used in real life. This update will roll out NASA logos to various places. It will also apply to for example the Space Shuttle where the logo was used both on the exterior and inside the cockpit. Big shoutout to Daniel Surber (Scorch) who kickstarted and helped me with the process!


Orbit View improvements
A large section of this update is a generic improvement to the Orbit View (F3). The orbit view is now more stable, and all key points are rendered with an icon. You can now easily see the Apogee, Perigee, asc/desc nodes and the position of the space crafts. For apollo, a planned maneuver point is rendered correctly, as well as the entry interface marker. I have also fixed some of the zoom limits in the Apollo Orbit View, and made a smoother transition when changing between for example the CM and the LM view modes.


Hovering the mouse cursor over one of these markers will in some cases show more information of the marker such as the altitude of Ap/Pe.

The icons used to show where the spacecrafts are is based on what icons they used in mission control.

I will continue iterating on the Orbit View, and maybe change some of the icons and coloring, etc.

I have also fixed a blocking issue where the CM/LM zoom levels on the Mission Pad MAP gets stuck if zooming in all the way.

Ocean landing requirement
I have added a setting in Main Menu -> Settings -> Realism Settings that will let you decide if landing on land will complete the mission. Typically during Mercury, Gemini and Apollo, the spacecrafts are designed to land in the ocean, and an atmospheric entry trajectory should be planned with a landing in the ocean.

However, sometimes you might land on land. In the previous update I started working on this, but landing on land did not complete the mission.

You can now choose this yourself, and the toggle is set by default to accept both ocean and land landings.


I have also continued to work on the land landing logic and connected it to the sequencer to cut the chutes and evaluate mission completion (based on the setting above).

Gemini Hydrogen (H2) tank
I have improved the logic of the cryogenic system in Gemini. The Hydrogen and Oxygen consumption has been balanced, and the O2/H2 heater circuit breakers is properly connected to the heater system.
I have also fixed some issues related to the H2 draining as reported by some players.


Apollo "BBQ roll" (PTC) procedures and logic
I have improved the logic around achieving PTC roll in the Apollo CSM. This is a procedure that typically runs most of the coasting period between TLI/T&D and LOI, and during coasting back to earth between TEI and entry. The goal of the procedure is to align the space craft with the sun so the spacecraft sides points towards the sun, and then start a slow roll (typically 0.3 deg/sec) so that the sun and the shadow side "BBQs" the CSM evenly on all sides.



The general procedures for this is to:
1) First set the computer to P00 and accept uplink.
2) Then you need to open the CREW MEMBERS -> REQUEST REFSMMATs -> REQUEST PTC REFSMMAT.
This will uplink a PTC REFSMMAT to the computer. Once uplinked, you need to align to it using P52 Option 1.
3) Use V49E to maneuver to the PTC attitude, this is typically roll=0, pitch=90, yaw = 0.
4) Key V79E on the DSKY:
- N16 shows the time of the maneuver. Leave it to all zeros to start the maneuver immediately and press PRO.
- N79 shows the target rate and dead band. Leave the default values of 0.3 deg/s of roll and press PRO. The maneuver will start.


I have updated the G&C GENERAL -> (V79) ORBRATE/PTC checklist. This also contains how to get out of the PTC roll.



General checklist and campaign fixes
I have been playing through the entire campaign and made updates to both mission files and checklists, and improved the general flow. Major improvements has been made to Mission 2 in campaign 3 for example.

The career tree has also been updated with various fixes (such as missing CM lesson 10 (T&D) etc).



VR: Recenter view
I have started working on an experimental recentering function. Unfortunately, as I am unable to reproduce the "head starts outside the cockpit" issue, I am working in the blind. I have added some more data related to this into issue the logs, and have added a new function that might solve it (or make things worse, let's see!).

Bind the Recenter VR binding (think default is SHIFT+F5), and once you have loaded into the Mercury capsule in VR, press this hotkey and if possible, give me a report of what happens or if it solves the recentering issue or not. :)

The key problem behind this is that there is no standard way or recentering the view in OpenXR, this has been offloaded from their APIs into the hardware of each HMD. Calling the OpenXR APIs to recenter the view are basically empty functions that does nothing. The method I am testing here is my own recentering function.


Patch notes:

• Require ocean landing toggle in Realism Settings
  
• Continued implementing the land landing logic and connected it with sequencers
  
• Fixed: Gemini EPS: FC O2/H2 cbs wired heater to bus
  
• Found the H2 draining issue in Gemini
  
• Apollo CM/LM hatch eq. Psi. fix
  
• Apollo: V79E to set orbrate/ptc roll rate
  
• Apollo CM PTC REFSMMAT procedures
  
• Apollo Crew Members REFSMMAT section changes
  
• Fixed: Apollo map zoom can get stuck on full zoom
  
• Started to improve the Orbit Vew with better and more stable icons and graphics
  
• Career Tree node fixes
  
• Campaign 3 fixes
  
• Minor fixes to the CM SECS logic
  
• Fixed some inverted normals in Gemini cockpit (culling)
  
• Applied the NASA logos where they should be.
  
• Experimental: VR, Recenter View
  

This update aims to improve a lot of systems, features and bug fixes across all the modules (Mercury, Gemini and Apollo). It touches many of the core features of the game, and fundamental code. This can lead to issues not yet detected during testing. Please let me know if you stumble on anything new.

Note: If you are experiencing issues with this build you can roll back to the previous using the Steam Betas Tab accessible from the Steam client (games properties).

Apollo
Multiple systems has been updated and improved in the Apollo CSM, and various checklists and procedures has been updated.
The main procedures you will need to learn again is the:
- Lunar Module pressurization: New checklist added to the CM T&D section: CM/LM PRESSURE EQ.
- Docking Probe (use gas to retract (Prim or Sec) the probe after extending it), existing checklist updated.

Docking Probe

The general procedure is to extend the docking probe while leaving the RETRACT PRIM/SEC in their middle/OFF position. When the docking probe is extended, set it to RETRACT. When docked, set the RETRACT PRIM/SEC (one of them) to 1 or 2 to start retracting the probe. The probe can retract 4 times, 2x in PRIM and 2x in SEC (for redundancy).

LM Pressurization
The LM is pressurized after docking during T&D, quite early in the mission. I have updated the Lunar Module Academy lesson 1 to cover the procedure.


I have also corrected an issue with the attitude hold during lunar ascent. However, you will need to key V77E (if this is the requested mode) if ATT HOLD input does not generate a rate acceleration, even if the panels are correctly configured (the LGC will need to know, and some programs can override the setting).

I have also made an overhaul of the CSM SM/CM RCS system and its monitoring on MDC-2.


Mercury gyros
I have updated the logic around the Mercury gyros and the alignment of them. Please note that if you go back to the normal gyro panel setting, the gyros will be slaved to the Horizon Scanners.


Dynamic Skybox during landing
I have improved the landing areas to account for the correct time as you land. This will make it possible to land during the day, or during the night. The time of day at the landing location controls the lighting conditions. It will be quite dark when you land during night, so I will try to add some landing aid/lights if they existed. When you plan a retrograde burn for atmospheric entry, try to plan an entry that lands during the day.


Mercury horizon scanners
I have improved the Mercury horizon scanner logic to better detect the "temperature differences" between Earth and Space. An issue originating back to the TSS (True Scale System) updates has made them have a slight offset depending on various conditions. This has now been fixed.


Removed the Waterworld
The infamous "Waterworld" bug/feature has been removed. The reason for this was the way fog is rendered during landing.

Landing area
I have started the process of differentiating between water and land after entry. If you land in the ocean, you will see the normal ocean landing area as you are used, except for different lighting conditions based on time at the landing area. If you land on land, a temporary and very simple (currently) land model will be rendered instead. I will improve the land area, and maybe look into something more procedural generated landscape in future patches.

When you plan a reentry, always try to land in the ocean.

Please note that you will not complete the mission if you land on land (please let me know if you want this to change - I will also consider it based on feedback and reports I get).


Mercury lessons
I have updated the Mercury lessons to better teach you what the nominal values for the various gauges and instruments are.
The map tab in the Mercury Mission Pad has also received orbit info, as Gemini and Apollo has.


Apollo missions
I have updates all Apollo missions and states with sun positioning logic corrections. I have also improved multiple lessons, and specifically improved the Earth Entry lessons. The "Apollo 8" (Campaign 3) and "Apollo 11" (Campaign 4) fictional missions has received many updates and sequence fixes based on new features and procedure changes over the years.


Apollo Sun Positioning issue fixed
Finally tracked down a very old issue where the sun orientation data saved into Apollo (Apollo only) Save States are wrong. This has been corrected but it might require you to use the sp console command to correct the sun position in previous save states. However, the save states should have stored the position correctly, but incorrectly load it.

I have also fixed the issue where the sun gets a slight offset (~0 - 10 degrees) as you enter the Lunar Sphere of Influence.



0.99.19 release notes

• Updated the later Mercury lessons to cover what instruments and gauges should show.
  
• Mercury Gyro logic fixes
  
• Horizon scanner updates to better detect the Earth horizon
  
• Mercury capsule model slight rotation offset (8 - 10 degrees) removed
  
• Mercury Reflection Probe panel brightness fix
  
• Apollo Earth Entry Academy lesson updates
  
• Dynamic Skybox during landing
  
• Landing system updates
  
• Reentry plasma effect updates
  
• Apollo Sun Positioning issue fixed
  
• Added orbit info into the Mercury Mission Pad (as Gemini and Apollo has)
  
• Fixed the missing atmosphere in the Gemini Orbit View
  
• Updates to the CSM SM/CM RCS systems, and monitoring
  
• Apollo CSM cabin repress and ECS updates
  
• Apollo CSM LM pressurize updates
  
• Updates to the CSM docking probe logic
  
• Apollo Campaign 3 mission updates and fixes
  
• Apollo Campaign 4 mission updates and fixes
  
• LM Att Hold after Lunar Ascent (Key V77 if it does not work)
  
• Fixed the "Offscreen Switch Indicator" setting (the graphics that will lead you towards a highlighted switch). You can now disable the Offscreen Switch Indicator again, if you desired to do so.
  

This is a patch covering a lot of reported typos in the Academy lessons, Checklists and Panel Dictionaries. I have also been revisiting some of the Mercury and Gemini lessons to better cover the core game mechanics. The patch also removes the old and confusing Quickstart campaign and references to it in the Career node tree.
The Mercury Flight Manual has received major updates.

Removal of the quickstart
Based on feedback and user testing I have decided to remove the old and confusing quickstart campaing. It started in an advanced space craft (Gemini) and tried to cover the core game mechanics. I have updated the Mercury Academy to cover these game mechanics and better introduce you to the game, at the same time as you learn to fly and operate the Mercury capsule.

Some of you might still see to the quickstart campaing since it can be installed into the "Campaigns" folder in the games AppData folder. If you want to remove it from the Campaings menu, you can delete the Quickstart folder here:
"%LOCALAPPDATA%LOW\Wilhelmsen Studios\ReEntry\Campaigns"

Mercury Academy updates
I have updated the Mercury campaign with everything the Quickstart campaign covered. In addition, the first few lessons will teach you what the various relevant gauged and instruments should show during an ascent, and what to monitor and look for.

In the next patch, I will also update the later Mercury lessons with what values instruments/gauges should show when going through the ECS, RCS and EPS lessons.

Typos
I have been fixing a lot of reported typos and issues with lessons and missions, as reported by the community. Thank you for reporting issues!

Game Build/Compilation pipeline
Another major fix is that the pipeline to upload patches and fixes to Steam has now been fully resolved and I can resume a more normal patch pace than before. Thank you all for the patience while this issue has been a major blocker for rolling out patches for the last two months.

Manual updates
Minor updates to the Reentry User Manual:


Major updates to the Mercury Flight Manual:



Patch notes:

• Blocking bug fix: Updated a bug preventing the mission to proceed from the circulation burn in the "Loss of Signal" campaign mission.
  
• Removed the old Quickstart campaign, Academy covers it
  
• Updates to Mercury lesson 1, 2, 3 to better cover the basic game mechanics, covering frequently asked questions
  
• Updates to Academy lessons, checklists and checklist dictionary to correct reported typos
  
• Updates to Gemini checklists
  
• Mercury Flight Manual updates