Capability Expansion Areas

Darksun tracks several areas of improvement to close the remaining gaps with STK. These topics are actively researched and prioritised as engineering bandwidth allows; they are not tied to fixed timelines.

Physics Scalability & Numerics

• Parallel spacecraft propagation – Evaluating worker-based distribution to keep UI responsiveness when propagating larger constellations.
• Higher-order integrators – Assessing RK7/8 style solvers and tighter error control for long-duration accuracy.
• Conditional force evaluation – Exploring adaptive gravitational models that balance precision and compute cost.

Critical Physics Models

• Solar radiation pressure – Investigating shadow modelling, configurable cross-sections, and albedo/thermal effects.
• Higher-order gravity – Extending zonal/sectoral/tesseral harmonics toward EGM2008-level fidelity.
• Atmosphere extensions – Reviewing NRLMSISE-00 / JB2008 support with space-weather inputs.
• Relativistic corrections – Studying first-order relativistic terms for deep-space accuracy.

Mission Workflow Enhancements

• Maneuver planning tools – Prototyping Astrogator-style node design, ΔV budgets, and solver-guided transfers.
• Conjunction analysis – Enhancing collision detection and decision-support outputs.
• Automation hooks – Expanding APIs so external guidance/autonomy code can access new physics models.