Galaxy Engine

Galaxy Engine is a real-time particle simulation program designed to explore gravitational interactions and fluid dynamics. Developed in C++ using the Raylib library, the engine can simulate from tens to hundreds of thousands of particles simultaneously, utilizing the Barnes-Hut algorithm to optimize gravity calculations. The software includes features for video recording, SPH fluid simulation, and high-quality rendering.

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• Real-time simulation. Galaxy Engine uses the Barnes-Hut algorithm to calculate gravitational forces efficiently, allowing for the interactive simulation of tens or hundreds of thousands of particles without interruptions in visualization.
• SPH fluid physics. The program incorporates the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method to simulate fluids, enabling the modeling of planetary formations, collisions, and material behavior in gravitational environments.
• Full 3D mode. Version 1.9.0 introduced a three-dimensional mode that retains all the functionality of the 2D mode, including simulation playback, infinite domain, and galaxy customization.
• Integrated video recorder. The engine includes a recording system that allows compiling videos and sequences of simulations with millions of particles for later analysis or presentation.
• AVX2 optimizations. It implements optimizations using AVX2 instructions for neighbor search, significantly improving performance in fluid simulations and density calculations.
• Brute-force gravity algorithm. It offers a brute-force gravity algorithm (available for systems with AVX2) as an alternative to Barnes-Hut for cases requiring maximum precision in gravitational calculations.
• Visual customization. Users can modify multiple visual parameters, including particle size, turbulence colors, trail thickness, and rendering effects to achieve the desired appearance.
• Interactive spaceship. It includes a spaceship feature with acceleration control that allows the user to move around and explore the simulation from different perspectives in real time.
• Specific simulation tools. It features dedicated tools such as black hole mass control, particle quantity multiplier, and options to create custom galactic configurations.
• Infinite domain support. Users can extend simulations beyond the traditional workspace limits, allowing the creation of cosmic environments without edge restrictions.
• Galaxy customization. It includes specific parameters to modify the structure and behavior of galactic simulations, facilitating the study of stellar formations and cluster dynamics.

The development of Galaxy Engine was initiated by NarcisCalin for educational and learning purposes. The program is primarily written in C++ (97.8%) with minor components in C, built on the Raylib library and using Dear ImGui for the user interface. The project began in 2025, with its first commit recorded in March of that year. Version 1.9.0, dubbed the 3D Update, was released in February 2026 and introduced the three-dimensional mode along with significant optimizations. NarcisCalin has received contributions and assistance from developers such as Crisosphinx for code improvements, SergioCelso for the initial implementation of the Barnes-Hut tree, and Emily for CMake configuration and multiple aspects of the project.

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