The new Vizzy update has a lot of new ways to use vectors. However, I'm having trouble understanding how the vectors map to things like headings and pitch.
Does anyone have documentation on vectors and how they behave in the game? Is X 'up', or 'east?'. What is 'z'?
For example, I'm trying to create a program that gently removes horizontal surface velocity. So it would conceptually be:
* set heading to surface retrograde heading
* set pitch to minimum ( surface retrograde pitch, 10)
Since I don't see a way to GET retrograde vector, I started working with Velocity Surface vector.
From my testing, it appears that from that vector, X is the velocity in the 'up' direction (kinda?). Y looks to be velocity towards North. And Z appears to be the velocity towards West (kinda?)
X and Z seem to have some sort of relation to each other that I can't figure out. When your velocity away from the surface increases, both X and Z increase. When your velocity towards the surface increases, both X and Z decrease.
That really confuses me. I would have expected either Z or X to solely represent your m/s away from the surface.
Can anyone help clear this up for me?
Thanks! :)
This is my understanding
PCI coordinates are the games reference frame to keep track of everything moving about the center of the sun. Most of the vectors returned are PCI vectors.
Converting to LatLongASL helps intuit the vectors a bit. They are in the form (E(-180,180),N(-180,180),height) where you are given degrees offset from the equator , meridian and the de level.
I’ve done made an “ENZ” expression to convert vectors to ground-locked coordinates in meters. To accomplish this I used the LatLongASL vector, planets radius, pi, and my ASL altitude.