Color, Lines & Markers | Inheritable & Overridable Attributes | Access, Custom & Real Time Intervals

2D Graphics Attributes

2D Graphics Attributes answer three basic questions about an STK object:

What do you want to show?

How do you want it to look?

When do you want it to be seen?

Display Options - Global, Local, and Overridable

Display options take the form of checkboxes that let you specify whether or not a given attribute should be displayed in the 2D Graphics window. They fall into three categories:

Global - can (or, in some cases, must) be set at the scenario level for all objects. Some global settings can be overridden locally for specific objects.
Local - can be set only for a given object.
Overridable - can be inherited from the scenario by other objects and optionally overridden.

Note: Overridable attributes are, by definition, global.

Overridable Display Options

The options in the following table can be set on the scenario's Global Attributes page. Global settings can then be inherited or overridden on the Attributes page for a given object:

Category Option Description
General Show Labels If selected, objects display in the 2D Graphics window with text labels.
Sensors Show Sensors If selected, sensor projections display in the 2D Graphics window.

Note: See below for local options for a sensor.
Vehicles Show Ground Tracks / Routes If selected, ground tracks or routes display. "Ground Tracks" refers to Satellites, Launch Vehicles, and Missiles; and "Routes" refers to Ships, Aircraft, and Ground Vehicles.
Show Orbits / Trajectories If selected, satellite orbit tracks and launch vehicle and missile trajectories display. This setting applies to Satellites, Launch Vehicles, and Missiles only.
Show Ground Markers / Route Marker This option affects only the perspective and orthographic map projections. If selected, the marker for a vehicle displays. "Ground Markers" encompasses Satellites, Launch Vehicles, Missiles, Ships, Aircraft, and Ground Vehicles. "Route Marker" is the local name of the field for Ships, Aircraft, and Ground Vehicles.
Show Orbit Markers / Trajectory Marker This option affects only the perspective and orthographic map projections. If selected, the marker for satellites, launch vehicles, and missile trajectories display. "Orbit Markers" refers to Satellites, Launch Vehicles, and Missiles. "Trajectory Marker" is the local name of the field for Launch Vehicles and Missiles.
Show Elset Number Satellites only. This option affects only SGP4 satellites with multiple two-line element sets. If selected, element set numbers for the satellites display.
Area Targets Show Centroids If selected, the area target's centroid displays in the 2D Graphics window.

Note: See below for local options for an area target.
Planets Show Orbits This option affects only the perspective and orthographic map projections. If selected, planet orbit tracks display.
Show Inertial Positions This option affects only the perspective and orthographic map projections. If selected, the position of the planet displays in the 2D Graphics window in the Central-Body Inertial (CBI) coordinate frame.
Show Position Labels If selected, planet labels display in the 2D Graphics window.
Show Subplanet Points If selected, the point directly below the planet displays in the 2D Graphics window.
Show Subplanet Labels If selected, a label appears at the location of each subplanet point in the 2D Graphics window.

Note: See below for local options for a planet.

Other Global Display Options

The following options are set at the scenario level and cannot be overridden locally.

Category Option Description
Access Show Line If selected, a line appears on the 2D and 3D Graphics windows between the two access objects to show when they are accessible to one another during animation.
Animate Highlight If selected, a box appears around each object during access.
Static Highlight If selected, access is highlighted in the 2D Graphics window as a thick line overlying the ground tracks for a vehicle or a vehicle sensor and as an X for a facility, a target, or a sensor that is attached to a facility or target.
Map Display Options Allow Animate Update If selected, an animation cycle for the current time is run after you click Apply or OK on any STK property page so that time-dependant graphics are immediately updated. Otherwise, you must click Reset on the Animation toolbar to update time-dependant graphics displays such as sensor fields of view.

Note: If the Allow Animate Update option is checked and the scenario contains many objects, the time it takes to update the 2D Graphics window may impact your work since all objects are reanimated for the current scenario time. In this case, consider unchecking the Allow Animate Update option.

Local Display Options

The following display options can be set locally for area target, line target, sensor, and planet objects.

Object Option Description
Area Target Show Boundary Points If selected, the individual perimeter points used to define the boundary of an area target are marked along the area target's boundary.
Fill If selected, the region covered by the area target displays as a filled area.
Show Bounding Rectangle If selected, a rectangle is constructed using the outermost boundaries defined for the area target. The bounding rectangle is displayed around the actual region covered by the area target.
Line Target Show Line Points If selected, the individual points used to define the line target are marked along the line. The point currently selected in the Path list is accented with a square.
Show Bounding Rectangle If selected, a rectangle is displayed using the outermost points defined for the line target as its reference.
Sensor Fill If selected, the region covered by the sensor footprint displays as a filled area.
Planet Orbit Display If the Show Orbit option is selected for the planet (either locally or inherited from the scenario global settings), select one of the following:
  • OneOrbit - display one full orbit of the planet.
  • Time - define the displayed orbit segment in terms of the amount of the orbit traversed by the planet during the selected interval, split evenly between trailing and leading portions. For example, if you specify 14 days, the orbit segment beginning 7 days before epoch and ending 7 days after is displayed.

Appearance Options - Color, Lines, and Markers

There are no global appearance options; all must be set locally for each object. Depending on the object, the following options are available:

Option Description Availability
Color Select the standard or custom color in which to display the object's marker and, if applicable, its pattern or tracks. All objects.
Line Style Select the type of line to represent the object's pattern or tracks. Objects that draw something on the Earth's surface, i.e. vehicles (tracks), sensors (patterns), and area targets (patterns or ellipses). Excluded are facilities, targets, planets, and stars.
Line Width Select the width of the line to represent the object's pattern or tracks. Same as Line Style.
Marker Style Select the type of marker to represent the object's current position. All objects except sensors.

Note: Although no marker displays for the sensor object itself, one can be selected for the sensor boresight.

Interval Options - Access, Custom, and Real Time

For a vehicle, you can vary the display of graphics attributes (display and attribute options) on the basis of:

Note: The Real Time graphics option appears on the Attributes page only if you have selected the Real Time propagator.

You can also set display times for other objects.