Part 5: Share Your Work

STK Pro, STK Premium (Air), STK Premium (Space), or STK Enterprise
You can obtain the necessary licenses for this training by contacting AGI Support at support@agi.com or 1-800-924-7244.

The Movie Timeline

Moving pictures can depict complex concepts and relationships that would be harder to understand using only data. The Movie Timeline Tool tool provides features and functions commonly used for movie making.

Use the Movie Timeline Wizard to Define the Output

Watch the following video. Then follow the steps below, which incorporate the systems and missions you work on (sample inputs provided).

  1. Launch the Movie Wizard.Closed
    1. Extend the View menu, select Toolbars, and click Movie Timeline to add the Movie Timeline toolbar.
    2. Click the Record () button to launch the Movie Wizard.
  2. Use the Movie Wizard to record your movie.
    1. Choose the Filename & Format.Closed
      1. Select the format (e.g. Windows Media (*.WMV)).
      2. Click Save as... and save the video in the preferred directory (e.g. MyVideo).
      3. Click Next>>.
    2. Choose the Window to record.Closed
      1. Select the Window you want to record (e.g. 1 - 3D Graphics 1 - Earth).
      2. Click Next >>.
    3. Set the ResolutionClosed
      1. Restore your 3D Graphics window (make sure it is not maximized).
      2. Select the desired resolution Preset (e.g. HDTV - 720p).
      3. Click Next >>.
    4. Choose the Camera viewClosed
      • Use the Current ViewClosed
        1. Click None (use current view).
        2. Click Next >>.
      • Use a Stored ViewClosed
        1. Click Select from list on right.
        2. Select a stored view on the right (e.g. Homeview).
          • To select a new stored view, you must close and reopen the Movie wizard.
        3. Click Next >>.
    5. Define the movie Time & LengthClosed.
      1. Set the desired Start time.
      2. Set the End time (e.g. ten (10) minutes after the start time).
      3. Set the Movie playback length (e.g. five (5) sec).
        • Notice how this changes the Step size / playback speed.
      4. Click the Preview Speed button to preview how the movie will look.
        • Alter the Movie playback length and/or Step size until satisfied.
      5. Click Next >>.
    6. Define the movie Size & QualityClosed
      1. Select the Render quality (e.g. 3 X 3 - Good quality for Anti-aliasing).
      2. Click Next >>.
    7. Click the Begin Record button to record the movie.
    8. When the recording is finished, click Yes on the Movie Timeline pop up to play the recorded movie.

CZML Exporter

This plugin enables you to export supported STK objects and graphics from an STK scenario to Cesium. Supported objects include 3D models, access lines, covariance ellipsoids, etc. You can find out more about the supported objects you can import and even those you can't from our Help page.

This requires STK 11.0.1 or later and the CZML Exporter UI Plugin.

Enable the CZML Exporter and Export the Scenario

  1. Launch the CZML Exporter.Closed
    1. Extend the View menu.
    2. Extend the Toolbars menu.
    3. Click CZML Exporter to add it to the toolbar.

      4. If this option is not available, please download the CZML Exporter from AGI Software Downloads, select the Other tab, and select an install from the STK UI Plugins row. Note that you need to log in using your AGI web account credentials to access the Software Downloads site.
    4. Open the Export to CZML window.
    5. In the Cesium panel, specify the model server.

      6. AGI has already converted all of the default STK models to gltf, which are hosted on assets.agi.com. If you would like to convert a custom model, or set up a local model server, please contact AGI support at support@agi.com.

  2. Export CZML.Closed
    1. Select Export CZML.
    2. Save to a file location on your machine.
    3. Click OK on the Success message.
  3. Navigate to the webpage.Closed
    1. In a web browser, navigate to Cesiumjs.org.
    2. Scroll down to the Cesium Widget and click the Tap to Interact message.
    3. Navigate to your saved CZML file, and drag and drop it onto the globe.
  4. Load the saved scenario to the webpage.Closed
    1. Locate the saved CZML file.
    2. Drag and drop the saved CZML file on to the Cesium Viewer.
  5. Use the animation controls and timeline view to change the time.
  6. Zoom to a specific object by double-click on the object.

Save STK Scenarios

You have the ability to save your work on their local machine or upload it to a web server-based STK Data Federate. Associated files for each object and any analysis are generated during the creation process and are saved in a location you specify. The files can be packaged as Visual Data Files (VDF) that can be opened in STK for additional modeling and analysis or presented with STK Viewer.

The catalog of facilities, satellite, and aircraft provided in the Standard Object Database (SOD) are hosted on the SDF.

Save the Scenario as a VDF

Watch the following video. Then follow the steps below, which incorporate the systems and missions you work on (sample inputs provided).

  1. Extend the File menu and select the VDF Setup tool.
  2. Enable the Exclude Install Files option.
  3. Click the Create VDF button.

Check out AGI's Best Practices for Authoring a VDF to get the most out of your VDF.

A video walkthrough of the Movie Timeline tool.

A video tutorial on the Movie Timeline tool.