Is it fixed as stated?
[ ] Yes
[ ] No
[x] Partial
I’m flying the few cloud preset. I could see 2 more layers. When at high altitude the sky gets covered completely horizontally and thick vertically within 100 miles. The cloud drawing distance seems too much though and looks like more than 200 miles.
Is it fixed as stated?
[ ] Yes
[ ] No
[x] Partial
The clouds (and the weather) in general are really good these days.
The base layer clouds are now too “flat” on the bottom, ie the lower edge is too well defined. This can occur IRL, but it’s rare.
Airport ATIS now seems to be reporting both the “Lower Cloudbase Bottom” AS WELL AS IT’S TOPS !!! , and reporting them in a highly inaccurate way, compared to what is set manually.
Note - we are NOT even talking REAL Weather here – this is with a Preset weather setting !!
Ceilometers are not typically able to determine Cloud Tops !!
Ref:
What is meant by cloud height, cloud layers, and cloud base
Cloud height
Cloud height is commonly used to refer to the height of the cloud base above ground level. (This is what the ceilometer reports.) However, it can also be used to refer to the thickness of a cloud, which is the difference in height between the base and very top of the cloud. It is possible for a ceilometer to estimate the thickness of thinner clouds. Occasionally, when reporting satellite data, it can also be used to refer to the height of the very top of a cloud above ground level.
Cloud layers
At any one time, there may be several separate layers of cloud above a point on the ground. Each of these is a cloud layer, and each is given a cloud base height when it is detected by a ceilometer. The WMO (World Meteorological Organization) has set out rules that govern the minimum vertical separation that is required between layers before reporting more than one layer of cloud.
Cloud base
The cloud base is the lowest part of a cloud that passes overhead. It is typically measured with a ceilometer.
Is it fixed as stated?
[ ] Yes
[ ] No
[x] Partial
It’s not that the cloud drawing is too far, it is more that the visibility is always too good, unless if in a rain bank (I call them transparent puffs).
All clouds are too transparent, especially once up close. It’s like they are opaque far away but then getting up close you can see through them. Some clouds in real life might be like this but not all?
Even if cloud variety cannot be fixed real soon (hopefully we will get more cloud types like even what we had at release of MSFS?) there is not enough vertical height variety. All cumulus and cumulonimbus clouds seem to have a “cap”. Once again sometimes that happens in real world depending on conditions, but usually the stronger storms have towering cumulus “heads” and anvils that poke way above the other cumulus clouds.
METAR is interrupting the weather generation big time. It’s like the METAR is always “fighting” the more natural/organic live weather system that MSFS shipped with at release, which was perfect and beautiful (okay yes some tweaks were needed but you know what I mean!) - also had a much wider variety of cloud types and even opaque overcast layers thick and thin! METAR is bugging the weather and making things look very unnatural. I don’t think it matter how many layers are added? Please consider ability to turn OFF metar for many of us who don’t care and would rather use the more natural weather system Asobo intended on us having to begin with.
Release Note Line Item 4 and Description: New cloud layering system
Is it fixed as stated?
[ ] Yes
[X] No
[] PartialIf no or partial, please give details below on your findings:
No evidence of improved cloud layering resolution under live weather. Multiple cloud layers reported by METAR still blend together and cannot be made out as distinct layers. I’m potentially misinterpreting the intent of this update as I can see no visible change.
Broken H/L cloud and low level clouds appear to be blending into one messy layer from ~2000 ft to ~27000 ft.
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Is this fixed as stated?
[ ] Yes
[ ] No
[ ] Partial
Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
Not necessarily. Any type of cumulus has a flat bottom. What I have a problem with is the layer above usually also looks like cumulus clouds, with a flat bottom and the rest puffy, which is meteorologically impossible. I’ll get a screenshot next time I see it. I’m especially interested in the meteorology of FS2020 as I’m a long-time meteorology research scientist and pilot!
Hey there, @n1074j, and welcome to the forums! Great to see you adding to the discussion.
Now that you are here, suggest you check out the Forum Guide where you can read about all the features available here to help you use and navigate the forums.
Again, welcome to the community. Blue skies and tailwinds.
Is this fixed as stated?
[ ] Yes
[ ] No
[x] Partial
Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
On Xbox Series X clouds have definitely changed with the latest 1.27.13.0 update, for example on the Tokyo Discovery Flight flying over the city used to be very jittery with all the building detail - now it is very smooth - BUT … the clouds have been sacrificed and look cartoonish, stretched, and you can see what I call “kleenex layers”
If relevant, provide additional screenshots/video:
