Physically-based simulated satellite imagery from WRF model output - visible true-color, IR, water vapor, GeoColor, Sandwich, and derived fields, with a desktop studio, headless CLI, and Python bindin
SimSat Studio - Physically-based simulated satellite imagery from WRF model output. SimSat renders what a geostationary weather satellite would see looking at your WRF run: NASA Blue Marble ground with terrain shadows and seasonal blending, a finite-disk sun with real twilight, volumetric clouds with multiple scattering, Cox-Munk water sun-glint — and synthetic thermal infrared through the same true-Kelvin enhancement pipeline the real GOES/Himawari products use. It ships as a desktop app (simsat_studio, Rust/egui/wgpu), a headless CLI, and a numpy-returning Python binding (import simsat).
What's new in 0.3.0
SimSat v0.3.0 — Earth colors and satellite rendering This release brings the improved cloud/surface rendering work since v0.2.1 into Windows Studio. It adds unshaded seasonal Earth maps, measured MODIS land colors, and repeatable local cases with automatic PNG export. - Studio exposes the NASA unshaded monthly Earth-map source and optional MODIS NBAR land input, with the same measured reflectance and snow handling as the renderer. Natural sRGB and the established ABI display transform are selectable. - Test-case JSON files appear in Open > Test cases. A case can open interactively or render/save automatically through Studio. CPU workers and CI build jobs are capped at six. - The underlying visible path includes the verified ocean-glint normalization fix, terrain and low-sun lighting work, and cloud-fraction/particle-optics experiments documented in the repository. - Research adds explicit per-band ABI first-order and all-order scalar Monte Carlo CLIs, official spectral-response inputs, independent transport checks, and checked-in case scoreboards. Monte Carlo remains optional, CPU-only at scene level, noisy at low sample counts, and unsuitable as the default Studio appearance. - Day/night thermal products and cached-run support remain available; workspace and standalone Python versions are synchronized. The measured land input is a nadir/noon MODIS RGB display proxy with strict source-grid/date checks. It is not arbitrary-angle BRDF or ABI per-band reflectance. The 1974 demonstration uses an explicitly labeled 2024 seasonal land analogue. Display intent still has appearance adjustments and must not be scored as an unmodified radiometric operator. Known scientific limits: the cold-cloud IR residual remains roughly +8 to +11 K in the evaluated case, and forecast cloud placement/temperature limits remain. This release does not claim complete ABI retrieval fidelity or state-of-the-art certification. See the committed scoreboards and transport notes for the measured improvements and remaining regressions. Extract the portable Windows zip. The optional Earth-map zip supplies the earth-basemap folder beside the EXE. Model simulations and personal case manifests are not bundled publicly. See docs/STUDIO-CASES.md for case creation and compatible inputs. This stable release promotes the tested v0.3.0-rc.1 renderer. The release transition changes version metadata and packaging; rendering and scientific limitations are unchanged. Previous releases remain available. …
SimSat v0.2.1 This release improves terrain illumination, especially around twilight, while preserving the reviewed cloud appearance. It also makes CIMSS Style the recommended Band-13 presentation. Highlights - Corrected surface sunlight normalization. Removed an unintended second limb-darkening factor from land, water, and glint illumination, bringing surface and cloud solar energy onto the same basis. - Better low-sun terrain. The reviewed, tightly gated terrain recovery is enabled for finished visible products from civil twilight through low sun, then returns to exact identity by +12 degrees solar elevation. - Slightly brighter reviewed terrain default. Recommended Display and High Quality Visible now use a restrained, surface-only ground_gain=1.10; 1.0 remains the neutral override. Cloud radiance is not scaled by this control. - CPU/GPU visual parity. GPU rendering now supports the same post-light terrain controls as CPU rendering instead of disabling them during preview. - CIMSS Style is now Recommended for Band 13. Fresh Studio settings, IR product transitions, the Recommended preset, and the headless IR CLI select CIMSS. Natural grayscale and the other analysis palettes remain available. - Consistent controls everywhere. Twilight recovery can be enabled, disabled, and tuned in Studio, the CLI, Python, and the Rust API. Existing saved settings are preserved through Studio's normal migration choice. - Science data remains unchanged. …
Frequently asked questions
Is SimSat Studio free?
Yes. SimSat Studio is free and open-source software released under the MIT OR Apache-2.0 license.
What is the latest version of SimSat Studio?
The latest version is 0.3.0, released on Sep 5, 2026.
Is it safe to download SimSat Studio?
The download button links to the official installer published on github.com, the same file Windows Package Manager installs. You can verify the downloaded file by comparing its SHA-256 checksum with 430df6d4a222a10d07e78df7eff2c4074de0832900c404076fa5894ab05e7d9a.
Which Windows versions does SimSat Studio support?
SimSat Studio runs on Windows and is available for 64-bit (x64) systems.
How do I uninstall SimSat Studio?
Open Settings › Apps › Installed apps, find SimSat Studio and select Uninstall. From the command line, run winget uninstall --id=FahrenheitResearch.SimSat -e.
Is there a portable version of SimSat Studio?
Yes. SimSat Studio is available as a portable program (simsat-studio-v0.3.0-windows-x86_64.exe, 64-bit (x64)) that runs without installation. Copy it to any folder or USB drive and run it from there.
Alternatives to SimSat Studio
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