2024-10 Update

This plugin is now available for free.

The sun and moon positions are calculated using reference astronomical equations, taking into account the latitude and longitude of the observer, as well as the time of day and year. This means that you can accurately represent the position of the celestial bodies in the sky.

In addition to the celestial bodies, the plugin also includes date and time handling capabilities. You can specify the date and time of day for your world, and the plugin will automatically calculate the positions of the sun and moon accordingly. This allows you to create realistic planetary schedules, including day/night cycles.

The plugin is based around a date and time system, allowing you to set specific dates and times for your world, or alternatively, you can let it run as a real-time game clock. You can also switch between the two on the fly.

By default, this plugin creates a global GameInstanceSubsystem that most parts of the engine can reference. Climate Systems will automatically pick up on this subsystem if the GameInstance or GameState do not implement the IDateTimeSystemInterface interface.

A demo of the motion of the sun is demonstrated in this YouTube video.

An example of some use cases can be found in this video.

Update 1.3:

Corrected GetMoonRotation.

Sky Material now shades the moon in relation to its phase.

Update 1.4:

Fixed an error where the yearbook didn't work in standalone applications.

Added support for HDRI's of the night sky in the sky material.

Added texture support for spherical moon textures.