↟EARTHBOUNDSUBORBITAL FLIGHT LAB
SIMPLIFIED EARTH

Preparing your flight deck…

YOUR PLANET. YOUR FLIGHT.

Where will you
touch down?

Pick two points on Earth. Fly the space between.

Search a place or address

Search sends your query to Google and requires configured Google scenery. Queries and selected addresses are not saved by the game.

Google Maps search · Google privacy

LAUNCH
LANDING
Latitude and longitude
LAUNCH
LANDING
Platform elevations and scenery

Contact uses independent fictional platforms. Elevations are metres above the WGS84 ellipsoid, not terrain measurements. Detailed scenery is experimental; verify platform alignment before flying.

Optional estimate: NASA/METI ASTER terrain via Open Topo Data, converted using NGA EGM96. Adds 20 m clearance; inspect and adjust before flight. Dataset gaps and height errors are possible.

Optional scenery needs an owner-configured data service. It stays off by default.

Graphics and performance

Auto starts at Balanced quality. Flight physics stays the same at every graphics setting.

Early development build. Real Earth coordinates; simplified scenery and contact surfaces. Detailed endpoint scenery and address search need configured services and are not live-provider verified.

Privacy · Use and data sources

FLIGHT SCHOOL

You have the controls.

Turn on the engine, then raise throttle to lift off. Tilt gradually to travel toward your destination. Shut down to coast; re-ignite and brake before landing.

W / S
Raise / lower throttle
E
Engine on / off
Arrow keys
Pitch and yaw
Q / R
Roll in Insane mode
L
Toggle upright assist (Assisted mode)
Space
Pause / resume
Camera preferences

Rocket Chase stays behind the rocket, including its tilt and roll. Near the simplified ground or a pad, the camera may lift for clearance; the held-control arrows then show the actual nose-tilt directions. The world can rotate around you in Insane mode. Horizon Chase keeps north ahead; the held-control cues show nose-tilt directions in that view.

Graphics during flight

Graphics can be changed while the flight is paused.

Navigation

The orange arrow shows the direction of horizontal travel toward the landing site in the current camera view. It is not an arrow-key command: controls still follow the rocket. The large circle marks the site when visible; an edge arrow guides you toward a site outside the clear view or beyond the horizon. OVER SITE means within 100 m horizontally; you must still descend safely.

Globe starts with Route frame ON: it follows the rocket, turns toward the landing site, and adjusts distance as the route unfolds. Zoom adjusts your framing; zooming very close may put the site off-screen. Switch Route frame OFF to rotate freely while following the rocket. A site beyond the Earth’s horizon cannot be shown through the globe. Chase view supports the + / − buttons or mouse wheel. Altitude is clearance above the simulated contact surface beneath the rocket; it is not measured terrain height. Target-platform clearance and WGS84 height are in Current flight details.

Your first flights

  1. Start with Assisted mode and Practice a landing. You begin 1,200 m above the target, descending at 40 m/s. Ignite promptly; pause to read the current coaching, or open Help. Braking estimates are approximate.
  2. Use Level assist to recover upright, then adjust throttle as descent slows. Reduce thrust before you start climbing again. Aim for a gentle touchdown.
  3. Try a launch with the default nearby target before a long trip. Brief arrow-key inputs tilt the rocket; release them to stop rotating in Assisted mode. The target bearing is a compass direction, not a steering command.

The initial rocket heading faces the route: ↑ tilts toward the destination and → tilts to its right. Rocket Chase stays behind it, so the nose-tilt directions normally keep matching the arrows. Severe low-altitude attitudes may require the camera to lift for clearance. The brief mint arrows around the rocket show the nose tilt commanded while a key is held, not sideways thrust or its actual travel direction. In Globe, Landing or Horizon Chase, their direction changes with the view. The number in the middle of the touch arrows is the tilt from upright. After tilting, engine thrust follows the rocket’s nose; momentum continues until you brake. Roll changes the geographic direction of pitch and yaw. The impact marker estimates an engine-off flight, not an autopilot route.

Assisted mode damps rotation after you release a control. Insane mode retains angular motion. Optional Level assist points the rocket upright and consumes reaction-control fuel. Neither mode lands for you.

The rocket and performance are fictional. Ground contact currently uses simplified surfaces. Ballistic guidance is approximate and assumes no engine thrust. This is an early build, not an aerospace training tool.