Do you have the same issue if you follow the OP’s steps to reproduce it?
Yes
Provide extra information to complete the original description of the issue:
I applaud this bug report whilst recognising this is a temporary workaround that is achievable in the short window we have between beta and final. I also applaud Asobo’s commitment to working towards an accurate terrain based heat map.
It should be pointed out however - maybe for SU13 or later, that there is actually no such thing as Ground Heat thermals and cloud thermals. Maybe this is something that gets lost in translation - and if so, I apologise, but actually - there are only thremals. The presence or absence of clouds above the ground hotspots is ENTIRELY dependent on the presence (or lack of) moisture in the atmosphere at any given time. So with dry air, we get “blue days” (no cumulus clouds) whilst on moist days we get cumulus appearing - the size and spread of the cumulus being determined by the amount of moisture in the air.
At the moment, I suspect there is some frustration because we know from out multiplayer group flights that if we all press the “Fly now” button at preceisely the same time - we all see exactly the same sky and cloud formations - so it seems clear that we are starting each flight with a pre-defined CLOUD MAP. This of course means that in order for our “Thermals under Clouds” requirement, the software has to reverse calculate the wind trajectory back to a point on the ground. If it happens to land on a “Ground Heat” spot, then we suspect the heat calculation is added to the Cloud thermal calculation to produce excessive lift. This is the thing we cannot currently test simply because there is too much interference from Ground heat.
Going forward then. The ultimate goal is an accurate terrain based heat map that will work in both live weather and weather presets, and from that start point to draw the clouds (or not) with the correct spread and density commensurate with the moisture content at the time. In doing this, we will achieve what can only be good for pilots of all flying machines - EXACTLY the same terrain heat map AND EXACTLY the same sky. In order to achieve this, Asobo will need to look at the reasons why these bubbles of rising air become detached from the ground to move upwards at a rapid rate. I’m talking here about the requirement for a 2 Degree temperature difference between the hot area and surrounding terrain. This requirement is well documented and can be googled rather than me extending this post any longer than it already is.
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