Teknozip – Fancy keeping tabs on the International Space Station (ISS) from the comfort of your own home? A creative maker has devised a brilliant DIY project using a Raspberry Pi to track the ISS in real-time, and the results are impressive.
Redditor fil1983 showcased their creation on the Raspberry Pi subreddit: a sleek ISS tracker that wouldn’t look out of place in a NASA control room. The project cleverly combines a 3D-printed enclosure, a display screen, a Raspberry Pi 3B, and a readily available API.
The device taps into the API to pinpoint the ISS’s latitude and longitude, displaying its location on a 3D model of the Earth. Not only that, but it also provides data on the station’s altitude, speed, and the geographical area it’s currently flying over.
Also Read
Adding a touch of whimsy, the creator incorporated a large toggle switch. More than just a novelty, flipping the switch reveals information about the astronauts currently aboard the ISS, sourced from another free API.
For those eager to embark on this project, detailed instructions and code are available on the creator’s GitHub page. The 3D model for the enclosure can be found on MakerWorld, allowing you to replicate this fantastic ISS tracker.
Here’s a breakdown of the components used:
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| Raspberry Pi 3B | The brains of the operation |
| Display Screen | For visualising the ISS location and data |
| 3D-Printed Enclosure | A stylish housing for the electronics |
| Toggle Switch | For switching between ISS and crew data |
| ISS API | Provides real-time location data |
| Crew API | Provides information on current astronauts |