I just noted in today's uploaded scenery listing several files called France Thermals.Are thermals caused by terrain properties modeled? ITRW thermals and other air currents can occur due to wind over terrain surface slope, terrain type due to sun reflectivity, and other causes. With real world piloting of small GA aircraft traveling at 105 to 140 IAS, I noted the altitude changes due to reflectivity and heat storage properties of terrain such a lift produced over lake water on a sunny day. As a passenger on an airliner ascending or descending over a dense cloud layer (Minneapolis), I would often see in the cloud pattern the outline of the river below and cloud builds over lakes. In one example there was a dense cloud layer approaching one of the Great Lakes but soon a hole appeared over the lake, its location allowing for the horizontal drift caused by wind. Frequently CAT occured over large water bodies as well.So, in FS, do thermals appear affecting altitude changes on flight models and has anyone noticed corresponding changes in cloud layers?

Thermals are not simulated using "real world" characteristics. Instead they are placed using the scenery SDK. Not being a glider pilot I don't know realistic they are. However, they do provide inputs to the sim engine, so they would affect a sailplane much differently that a jetliner.

tdragger is correct, thermals are not modelled, you ned to add them as scenery files - you may have seen some recently on the front page 'new uploads'.This site should give you all the information you need.http://virtualsoaring.org/index.htmlHappy soaring.

Could thermals be added to a scenery to simulate turbulance caused by ground, such as that found around an airport near a mountain or in a wind-swept valley? Would that even be an accurate representation of the effects one may feel when on approach to such a place (PAKT, for example)? I am not a real world pilot...I wouldn't even call myself a simulator pilot :) However, I do think that it would be cool to add thermals to the area around an airport in a valley or some other land form that may cause turbulance, etc.