Thanks for the code Jorge, hopefully I’ll be able to learn how scripts are handled in Blender to make use of that.
Ricky, sorry, having lots of trouble with this forum UI, can’t see how to upload a text file. The text of my ActionScript is appended below, including several additional lines of star data (hope it works). Not sure what you mean by “overhead lines,” again I apologize for my noobness at Blender, just trying to be overall efficient with my time and learn the capabilities of this app before investing in a learning curve.
This model will be a 3D geocentric rendering of the stars, no need to get involved with planets and orbits (maybe later). All I need is a camera at the origin of spherical distribution of stars, and the ability to rotate the camera up, down and sideways to look at different areas. Once I learn what I’m doing, I can get creative, but for now, I just want to confirm the capabilities of Blender in handling such a script. Thanks!
coord = new Array();
var radius;
radius = 400;
SidTime = 0;
NtoS = 0;
// coord is an empty array. we populate it by using “push”
// to add stuff to the empty array
// this data – 2-10h RA – centered on 6h (Mar 1, 8:00PM)
// under +/- 50 deg Dec, down to mag 5.5
coord.push([4, 30.001, -21.078]);
coord.push([5.35, 30.311, -30.002]);
coord.push([5.14, 30.426, -44.713]);
coord.push([4.33, 30.511, 2.764]);
coord.push([5.23, 30.511, 2.764]);
coord.push([2.26, 30.975, 42.33]);
coord.push([4.84, 30.978, 42.331]);
coord.push([4.69, 31.123, -29.297]);
coord.push([5.03, 31.641, 22.648]);
coord.push([2, 31.793, 23.463]);
coord.push([4.82, 32.122, 37.859]);
coord.push([4.98, 32.355, 25.94]);
coord.push([3, 32.385, 34.987]);
coord.push([4.94, 33.093, 30.303]);
coord.push([5.27, 33.2, 21.211]);
coord.push([5.28, 33.227, -30.724]);
coord.push([4.37, 33.25, 8.847]);
coord.push([4.83, 33.305, 44.232]);
coord.push([5.28, 33.984, 33.359]);
coord.push([4.87, 34.263, 34.224]);
coord.push([4.01, 34.328, 33.847]);
coord.push([5.03, 34.738, 28.643]);
coord.push([5.3, 34.82, 47.38]);
coord.push([3.04, 34.836, -2.978]);
coord.push([5.28, 35.485, -0.396]);
coord.push([5.2, 35.635, -23.816]);
coord.push([5.19, 36.103, 50.007]);
coord.push([4.89, 36.487, -12.291]);
coord.push([4.25, 36.746, -47.704]);
coord.push([5.14, 37.007, -33.811]);
coord.push([4.28, 37.04, 8.46]);
coord.push([5.29, 37.041, 29.669]);
coord.push([5.25, 37.875, 2.267]);
coord.push([4.75, 38.021, -15.245]);
coord.push([5.15, 38.025, 36.147]);
coord.push([5.35, 38.039, -1.035]);
coord.push([4.9, 38.461, -28.233]);
coord.push([5.35, 38.945, 34.688]);
coord.push([4.86, 38.968, 5.593]);
coord.push([5.3, 39.26, 34.264]);
coord.push([5.3, 39.704, 21.961]);
coord.push([4.07, 39.87, -0.329]);
coord.push([4.84, 39.89, -11.872]);
coord.push([4.75, 39.95, -42.892]);
coord.push([4.11, 40.167, -39.855]);
coord.push([5.3, 40.171, 27.061]);
coord.push([4.91, 40.562, 40.194]);
// This creates starr duplicate movie clips for each member of the coord array.
// The loop plots x and y coordinates for all i, i.e. for each member of the coord array.
// The scale is just a fudge factor that returns
// a linear decline in star size for increasing magnitude value
for (var i = 0; i<coord.length; i++) {
_root.star.duplicateMovieClip(“starr”+i, i);
_root[“starr”+i]._x = radius*Math.cos((SidTime+coord[i][1])*Math.PI/180)*Math.cos((NtoS+coord[i][2])Math.PI/180)+275;
_root[“starr”+i]._y = radiusMath.sin((NtoS+coord[i][2])Math.PI/180)(-1)+275;
_root[“starr”+i]._xscale = (6-(coord[i][0]))*3;
_root[“starr”+i]._yscale = (6-(coord[i][0]))*3;
}