Rocket Launch Visualizer

An interactive browser-based tool for simulating and visualizing rocket trajectories using a physics-based gravity turn model.

Live demo: https://bradybridges.github.io/rocket-launch-visualizer/

Features

• RK4 gravity turn simulation with atmospheric drag
• Configurable launch parameters: target orbit altitude, thrust-to-weight ratio, pitchover angle, pitchover altitude, and atmosphere toggle
• SVG trajectory graph with a velocity-gradient path, launch/insertion markers, and a hover tooltip showing altitude, velocity, downrange distance, and elapsed time
• Orbit stats panel: circular velocity, achieved velocity, circularization Δv, total Δv, burn duration, and apogee

Tech Stack

• React 19 + TypeScript
• Vite
• D3 v7 (scales/math, React-owned DOM)
• react-hook-form + Zod (validated controls)
• Tailwind CSS v4

Getting Started

npm install
npm run dev

Open http://localhost:5173 in your browser.

Scripts

Command	Description
npm run dev	Start dev server with HMR
npm run build	Type-check and build for production
npm run preview	Preview the production build
npm run lint	Run ESLint