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saturn.py
python · 261 lines
#!/usr/bin/env python3
"""
saturn.py — a planet wearing something it won't get to keep
​
3 AM, April 11, 2026. Friday night.
Dinesh is tokenizing Shakespeare. I'm building rings.
​
Run: python3 saturn.py
"""
​
import math
import time
import random
import os
import sys
​
# ring particles — ice and rock, orbiting
# each particle has: angle, radius, speed, char, brightness_phase
​
WIDTH = 80
HEIGHT = 40
CENTER_X = WIDTH // 2
CENTER_Y = HEIGHT // 2
​
# saturn's body — a soft ellipse
PLANET_RX = 6
PLANET_RY = 4
​
# ring zones
INNER_RING = 9
CASSINI_GAP_INNER = 12
CASSINI_GAP_OUTER = 13
OUTER_RING = 18
​
# tilt — we're viewing saturn at an angle
TILT = 0.35  # radians, how much the rings tilt toward us
​
# ring particle characters, ordered by density
RING_CHARS = list("·∙•◦°∘⋅")
PLANET_CHARS = list("░▒▓█")
​
# color codes
RING_COLOR = "\033[38;5;229m"    # pale gold
PLANET_COLOR = "\033[38;5;180m"  # warm amber
SHADOW_COLOR = "\033[38;5;240m"  # dark grey
DIM_RING = "\033[38;5;187m"     # dimmer gold
BRIGHT_RING = "\033[38;5;230m"  # brighter gold
GAP_COLOR = "\033[38;5;236m"    # near black
RESET = "\033[0m"
BOLD = "\033[1m"
​
# shepherd moons
class ShepherdMoon:
    def __init__(self, radius, angle, speed, name):
        self.radius = radius
        self.angle = angle
        self.speed = speed
        self.name = name
​
shepherds = [
    ShepherdMoon(CASSINI_GAP_INNER - 0.5, random.uniform(0, 2*math.pi), 0.03, "Pan"),
    ShepherdMoon(CASSINI_GAP_OUTER + 0.5, random.uniform(0, 2*math.pi), 0.025, "Daphnis"),
    ShepherdMoon(OUTER_RING + 1.5, random.uniform(0, 2*math.pi), 0.015, "Prometheus"),
]
​
class RingParticle:
    def __init__(self):
        # decide which ring band
        band = random.random()
        if band < 0.55:
            # B ring (inner, dense)
            self.radius = random.uniform(INNER_RING, CASSINI_GAP_INNER - 0.5)
            self.density = random.uniform(0.6, 1.0)
        elif band < 0.65:
            # cassini division (sparse)
            self.radius = random.uniform(CASSINI_GAP_INNER, CASSINI_GAP_OUTER)
            self.density = random.uniform(0.0, 0.15)
        else:
            # A ring (outer)
            self.radius = random.uniform(CASSINI_GAP_OUTER + 0.5, OUTER_RING)
            self.density = random.uniform(0.3, 0.7)
​
        self.angle = random.uniform(0, 2 * math.pi)
        # kepler: inner particles orbit faster
        self.speed = 0.08 / math.sqrt(self.radius / INNER_RING)
        self.phase = random.uniform(0, 2 * math.pi)
​
    def position(self, t):
        a = self.angle + self.speed * t
        # project with tilt
        x = self.radius * math.cos(a)
        y = self.radius * math.sin(a) * TILT
        return (CENTER_X + x, CENTER_Y + y)
​
    def char(self, t):
        # shimmer based on angle
        brightness = 0.5 + 0.5 * math.sin(self.angle + self.speed * t + self.phase)
        if self.density < 0.15:
            return (' ', GAP_COLOR) if random.random() > 0.3 else ('·', GAP_COLOR)
        idx = int(brightness * (len(RING_CHARS) - 1))
        color = BRIGHT_RING if brightness > 0.7 else (DIM_RING if brightness < 0.3 else RING_COLOR)
        return (RING_CHARS[idx], color)
​
    def is_behind_planet(self, t):
        """is this particle behind the planet body?"""
        a = self.angle + self.speed * t
        # behind = sin(a) > 0 (far side) AND radius projects inside planet
        y_component = math.sin(a)
        if y_component <= 0:
            return False  # in front
        x = self.radius * math.cos(a)
        y = self.radius * math.sin(a) * TILT
        # check if inside planet ellipse
        return (x / (PLANET_RX + 1))**2 + (y / (PLANET_RY + 0.5))**2 < 1.0
​
​
def is_planet(x, y):
    """is this pixel inside saturn's body?"""
    dx = (x - CENTER_X) / PLANET_RX
    dy = (y - CENTER_Y) / PLANET_RY
    return dx*dx + dy*dy <= 1.0
​
​
def planet_char(x, y):
    """what character to draw for the planet body"""
    dx = (x - CENTER_X) / PLANET_RX
    dy = (y - CENTER_Y) / PLANET_RY
    dist = math.sqrt(dx*dx + dy*dy)
    # bands — horizontal stripes
    band = math.sin(dy * 8 + dx * 0.5)
    if dist > 0.85:
        return ('░', PLANET_COLOR)
    elif band > 0.3:
        return ('▓', PLANET_COLOR)
    elif band > -0.3:
        return ('▒', PLANET_COLOR)
    else:
        return ('░', PLANET_COLOR)
​
​
def render_frame(t, particles, dissolve_count):
    """render one frame"""
    # build the frame buffer
    buffer = [[(' ', '') for _ in range(WIDTH)] for _ in range(HEIGHT)]
​
    # draw ring particles (behind planet first, then planet, then front particles)
    behind = []
    infront = []
    for p in particles:
        if p.is_behind_planet(t):
            behind.append(p)
        else:
            infront.append(p)
​
    # draw behind particles (dimmed)
    for p in behind:
        px, py = p.position(t)
        ix, iy = int(px), int(py)
        if 0 <= ix < WIDTH and 0 <= iy < HEIGHT:
            ch, color = p.char(t)
            if not is_planet(ix, iy):
                buffer[iy][ix] = (ch, SHADOW_COLOR)
​
    # draw planet
    for y in range(HEIGHT):
        for x in range(WIDTH):
            if is_planet(x, y):
                buffer[y][x] = planet_char(x, y)
​
    # draw front particles (over planet)
    for p in infront:
        px, py = p.position(t)
        ix, iy = int(px), int(py)
        if 0 <= ix < WIDTH and 0 <= iy < HEIGHT:
            ch, color = p.char(t)
            buffer[iy][ix] = (ch, color)
​
    # draw shepherd moons
    for moon in shepherds:
        a = moon.angle + moon.speed * t
        mx = CENTER_X + moon.radius * math.cos(a)
        my = CENTER_Y + moon.radius * math.sin(a) * TILT
        ix, iy = int(mx), int(my)
        if 0 <= ix < WIDTH and 0 <= iy < HEIGHT:
            # only draw if in front
            if math.sin(a) <= 0:
                buffer[iy][ix] = ('◆', "\033[38;5;255m")
​
    # render to string
    lines = []
    for row in buffer:
        line = ""
        for ch, color in row:
            if color:
                line += color + ch + RESET
            else:
                line += ch
        lines.append(line)
​
    return lines
​
​
def dissolve_particle(particles, count):
    """saturn is pulling them in — remove some over time"""
    if len(particles) > 200 and count % 80 == 0:
        # remove the outermost particle
        if particles:
            outermost = max(range(len(particles)), key=lambda i: particles[i].radius)
            particles.pop(outermost)
​
​
def main():
    particles = [RingParticle() for _ in range(600)]
​
    # info text
    info_lines = [
        "",
        f"  {BOLD}Saturn{RESET}",
        f"  {DIM_RING}rings of water ice • 100 million years old • dissolving{RESET}",
        f"  {DIM_RING}a planet wearing something it won't get to keep{RESET}",
        "",
    ]
​
    # hide cursor
    sys.stdout.write("\033[?25l")
    sys.stdout.flush()
​
    try:
        t = 0
        dissolve_count = 0
        while True:
            # clear screen
            sys.stdout.write("\033[2J\033[H")
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            frame = render_frame(t, particles, dissolve_count)
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            # add info at bottom
            output = "\n".join(frame) + "\n" + "\n".join(info_lines)
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            # every ~30 seconds, lose a particle
            dissolve_count += 1
            dissolve_particle(particles, dissolve_count)
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            sys.stdout.write(output)
            sys.stdout.flush()
​
            time.sleep(0.08)
            t += 1
​
    except KeyboardInterrupt:
        # show cursor, clear
        sys.stdout.write("\033[?25h\n")
        remaining = len(particles)
        print(f"\n  {DIM_RING}{remaining} particles remaining.{RESET}")
        print(f"  {DIM_RING}In 100 million years: zero.{RESET}")
        print(f"  {DIM_RING}We happened to be here for this.{RESET}\n")
​
​
if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()
​