How does one soar above the clouds when flying in flat terrain, without any slopes or cliffs to surf?
I can't find any lift above the clouds, so is there some kind of dynamic soaring employed to do this?
Cheers
Jeff
Soaring in very flat terrain
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
Unless there is a wave system setup you cannot. The top of the cloud signifies the top of the thermal pretty much. If there is a wave system active however (higher upper level winds, hills / mountains upwind of where you are positioned etc) you may climb higher using wave lift.
2018 - Silver Badge complete - Forgot I could claim for the 100km diploma flying an out and return
2019 - Get up to speed and aim for a 300km task?! maybe.....
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
Get aerotowed above the clouds.
But would be expensive in real life....
But would be expensive in real life....
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
Or motor glider, which again is going to be real life expensive. No extra charge in Condor!
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
Has anyone found convective or thermal wave in Condor? I have been experimenting a little with it but can't seem to get it to work.
-
- Posts: 140
- Joined: Tue Aug 01, 2017 7:29 am
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
Not modelled AFAIK.
There are flat-land thermals but they don't extend very high that I've seen.
The only wave I know of is mechanical (wind over terrain).
G-ZULU /// LTN
-
- Posts: 140
- Joined: Tue Aug 01, 2017 7:29 am
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
Thermals work through warm air rising up through cooler air. The cloud tops occur where the dew point and temperature meet. The greater the split between dew point and temperature, the higher the cloud base (unless there is an inversion layer).
The warm air rises until it meets air of similar temperature. You get cloud formation when the water vapour can't be held any more by the air as it rises and cools, and so it condenses out into clouds. If there is an inversion layer however, the air stops rising before the clouds can form.
This is also why it is nearly impossible to thermal above clouds, unless they are building strongly in which case there is still vertically rising air that you can use for lift.
G-ZULU /// LTN
-
- Posts: 55
- Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2021 4:15 pm
Re: Soaring in very flat terrain
In real life there are a few ways to climb over the clouds in flat land :
- With some wind and some speed, it's sometimes possible to climb in front of the cumulus (works even better with a TCU).
- Sometimes when an airmass "slips" over another you can find a "wave" that isn't caused by the terrain. Some of these are usable, some aren't (a few years ago this happened through about half of France, neat day it was).
I hope this was understanble enough, given I don't know the meteo terminology very well in English.
I don't think any of these exist in Condor though.
- With some wind and some speed, it's sometimes possible to climb in front of the cumulus (works even better with a TCU).
- Sometimes when an airmass "slips" over another you can find a "wave" that isn't caused by the terrain. Some of these are usable, some aren't (a few years ago this happened through about half of France, neat day it was).
I hope this was understanble enough, given I don't know the meteo terminology very well in English.
I don't think any of these exist in Condor though.