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Rocket Landing — Suicide-Burn Autopilot (2D)

A Newtonian rocket-landing lab: real thrust, gravity and quadratic aerodynamic drag integrated frame by frame, Tsiolkovsky-style fuel depletion, and a genuine suicide-burn ignition-altitude calculation steering the throttle against crosswind.

Aerospace Engineering & Orbital Mechanics2DModerate60 FPS📱 Mobile-adapted⇄ 3D version

This 2D companion swaps the 3D original's scripted descent animation for a real Newtonian model: thrust, gravity and quadratic aerodynamic drag are integrated every frame, fuel mass burns off through a Tsiolkovsky-style rate, and the autopilot ignites its suicide burn only when the kinematics say it must — the same ignition-altitude formula (v²=v₀²−2ad, solved for d) that real landing-burn planning uses, with a PD controller steering thrust sideways against crosswind.

⚙ Under the hood

Newtonian thrust/gravity/drag integration, Tsiolkovsky-style fuel depletion and a real suicide-burn ignition-altitude algorithm with PD lateral guidance fighting crosswind — no scripted flight path.

rocket landingsuicide burnnewtonian mechanicsaerodynamic dragfuel depletionpd controller

2D · HTML5 Canvas 2D · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install