VMD - Visual Molecular Dynamics

VMD is a molecular visualization program for displaying, animating, and analyzing large biomolecular systems using 3-D graphics and built-in scripting. VMD supports computers running MacOS X, Unix, or Windows, is distributed free of charge, and includes source code.
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Spotlight

"I would add that VMD (and similar tools, if they yet exist) will become a primary platform upon which to study a wide range of biological problems in the future. VMD adds a new dimension to the biologist's thinking. Certain thoughts generated in interaction with VMD images are inconceivable otherwise; the `language' essential to generating these ideas would just not be there! In other words, VMD is far from a simple `visualization tool' for a biologist, it is a true thinking tool. Without it a whole class of biological hypotheses would simply not exist."
-- Carl Woese
Other Spotlights

Overview

Molecular representations
VMD plugin library
Molecular file formats
GPU-accelerated computing
Interactive molecular dynamics
Programs that use VMD
VMD research publications
How to cite VMD
VMD citation list (37,000 as of Mar'21)

Download

Download (all versions)
VMD 1.9.4 (MacOS X, Unix, Windows)
VMD 1.9.3 (MacOS X, Unix, Windows)
VMD script library
License, Copyright and Disclaimer

Documentation and Support

User and installation guides
VMD-L mailing list
Publication image tutorial (YouTube)
Quick help
FAQ
Bug List

News and Announcements

Human Learning for Molecular Simulations: The Collective Variables Dashboard in VMD, JCTC, 2022
ANARI: A 3D Rendering API Standard, CiSE, 2022
The Coronavirus in a Tiny Drop, VMD visualizations of aerosolized SARS-CoV-2, NYT, 2021
#COVIDisAirborne: AI-Enabled Multiscale Computational Microscopy of Delta SARS-CoV-2 in a Respiratory Aerosol, IJHPCA, 2022
Intelligent Resolution: Integrating Cryo-EM with AI-Driven Multi-Resolution Simulations to Observe the SARS-CoV-2 Replication-Transcription Machinery in Action, IJHPCA, 2022
NIH Director's blog highlights neuroscience adaptation of VMD
AI-driven multiscale simulations illuminate mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 spike dynamics, IJHPCA, 2021
Multiscale modeling and cinematic visualization of photosynthetic energy conversion processes from electronic to cell scales, J. Par. Comp. 2021
NAMD and VMD part of the team winning the ACM COVID-19 Gordon Bell Prize for 2020
The Coronavirus Unveiled, VMD visualizations of SARS-CoV-2, NYT, 2020
Scalable molecular dynamics on CPU and GPU architectures with NAMD, JCP, 2020
VMD test builds for MacOS X 10.15 "Catalina" (April 24, 2020)
Past announcements

Gallery

An Accessible Visual Narrative for the Primary Energy Source of Life from the Fulldome Show Birth of Planet Earth, 1st Place Winner, SC'19 Viz. Showcase
Chromatophore VR demo (VMD + Unreal Game Engine) shown in NVIDIA booth at SC'16
Example VMD VR/3-D YouTube videos
Chemical Visualization of Human Pathogens: the Retroviral Capsids, Finalist, SC'15 Viz. Showcase
Visualization of Energy Conversion Processes in a Light Harvesting Organelle at Atomic Detail, 1st Place Winner, SC'14 Viz. Showcase
VMD movie gallery on YouTube
Gallery of Posters, Images, and Movies made with VMD
VMD running in the NanoDome at Temple University

Development

VMD User Survey Results
VMD development status and pre-release test downloads
CVS source code access
VMD Programmer's documentation