Gravitation Simulations

Overview: This applet provides simulations for the 4-body problem in which 4 masses are allowed to interact gravitationally. The motions are computed using Euler's method. These simulations represent my best attempt at finding stable periodic solutions to this problem. None of them appear to be stable.

Controlling the Simulation:

• dt is the time increment in years (so 0.003 is approximately one day). Give a negative value for dt to run the simulation backwards.
• Warp: The most time consuming part of the simulation is painting the window. Parameter "warp" indicates how many simulation time steps are performed per repainting. Large warp factors make the simulation run very fast.
• You can Pause the simulation, change dt and/or warp and then press Apply or Play to restart the simulation using these new animation parameters.