Summary
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Meridian Orrery uses an ESP32, 3D parts, magnets and motors to build a self-renewing desktop solar system.
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It uses the ESP32C3 and DS3231 RTC to calculate the planet positions offline after a one-time calibration.
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A clever 1:11 gear ratio puts the tiny Moon in precise orbit as the rings and planets line up at night.
There is something inherently beautiful about mixing ESP32 and 3D printing technology with space. After all, mankind has been looking at the planets and the moon for millennia, so representing the positions of the celestial bodies in the comfort of your own living room gives it a special air.
If you also want to do your own thing, then I have a project for you. Someone has created a complete solar system model that combines an ESP32, some 3D printed parts, and magnets, and it’s designed to be as easy to make as possible.
The Meridian Orrery is a planet model that you can build yourself
It even comes with a small moon orbiting the Earth
This great project is the brainchild of illusionmanager Instructionswho called his device the Meridian Orrery. It looks complicated, but its creator is actually proud of how simple it is under the hood. To do this, all you need is an ESP32C3 Super Mini, some motors and magnets, sandpaper, a 3D printer, and a DS3231 real-time clock to monitor the current time. Once you’ve set the date and time correctly, the Meridian Orrery can automatically determine where the planets are without an internet connection.
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The calibration process is quite fascinating and you can see it in action in the video above. Once a night, the device will start rotating until all the rings are vertically aligned. Once the planets are lined up, the device begins to “position” each planet in a back and forth motion until it is in the correct position.
But what about a miniature moon orbiting the Earth? Well, illusionmanager has implemented a clever fix for this:
A ring with 66 teeth has a small gear with 6 teeth running inside it. As the Earth’s ring moves, the Moon revolves around it. At this 1:11 ratio, a full rotation of the Earth causes the Moon to end up in exactly the same place. In other words, when the system calculates the rotation of the Earth, it also knows where the Moon will end up.
Honestly, looking at the Instructables page, it doesn’t look that hard to do. It seems that illusionmanager has done all the heavy lifting by creating the mechanism and programming everything and just put everything in place. Plus, there’s no better conversation starter than one you’ve made yourself.
