FSX-MS How to predict turbulence with active sky next?

[BeechPapa 32]

Ok there are 4 different sliders for turbulence that you can turn down to zero or lower values and that will give you less or no turbulence. 

 

Jim, I think he's just looking to add turbulence avoidance as a challenging aspect of the simulator, not control it himself. To that end, the PMDG weather radar on the 777 (and supposedly coming to the NGX soon) are the only FSX avionics I know of that are capable of designating turbulence on radar returns using it's WX+T mode. And personally I've never noticed it indicate any turbulence that wasn't already defined by a storm cell, so even that will be of limited use. 

 

As previously noted, sigmets and airmets are your best bet to finding turbulence. There are also user-generated pireps in ASN if you are in live mode. Looking at live weather radar, a winds chart like the one linked above by Bjratchf, or atleast examining the winds map on X-Gauge will also give some clues. You will find a higher degree of turbulence in temperature gradients, areas with fluctuating temp conditions where high and low pressure zones may be colliding. Same for winds aloft, you can probably expect some turbulence when crossing into/out of a jetstream or air mass that has a different speed or direction relative to the air mass around it - which the X Gauge or a flight planning utility like PFPX (sourcing it's weather data from ASN) will display quite nicely. And you can expect turbulence when climbing over high terrain, which ASN also mimics quite nicely. I always seem to get turbulence climbing over the Alaskan Range when departing Anchorage in the NGX. My climb rate also tends to shoot up due to updrafts.

 

Just keep in mind that predicting turbulence is still very difficult even for professional meteorologists or flight planners/dispatchers. Even if we can scope out the data ASN is feeding the sim, we have no way of doing that in nature. Some data, like exactly predicted turbulence locations, is just not realistic for us to have. 

[DarkstarF16 72]

I'm only surmising, and it would need someone from HiFi to answer the question regarding turbulance. it is unrealistic to assume that a weather engine running on a personal computer injecting weather into a simulator is fully capable of predicting turbulance when in real life the super computers of the Met Office have trouble predicting real world weather which is interpreted by humans.

 

I have to ask myself what is possible within a simulator. Although real world weather is used, a computer programme must use certain well known indicators of turbulance and switch on turbulance accordingly. it would be interesting to here from a commercial pilot on this subject. Are flight plans amended to take turbulance into account or are they simply warned that its a possibility on the route they are traveling?

 

JSkorna hit the nail on the head, if you experience turbulance iit's because it's their. Just as in RL you have to deal with it. Or, use the tools mentioned above to decide what route you'll take. Maybe an enhancement is needed on ASN if enough people are interested maybe!

[bjratchf 80]

ASN does a great job of injecting turbulence where it is expected to be- even if in real life you'd be lucky and have a smooth ride.

[DarkstarF16 72]

ASN does a great job of injecting turbulence where it is expected to be- even if in real life you'd be lucky and have a smooth ride.

Good point. Even more reason to having turbulance depicted on the ASN map perhaps. Because it's so unpredictable, using other sources may give you different results. With data you have to stick with one source to get consistent results.

[bjratchf 80]

I think ASN dealt with an issue where the turbulence was always simulated constantly within the SIGMET areas, and they modified this after SP1 to be more varied. Just like in real life, a SIGMET only forecasts the potential for strong turbulence- to find out if it's acutely happening you need to rely on PIREPS.

 

http://aviationweather.gov/airep

 

You'll notice that going across the pacific, aircraft will submit reports at each waypoint as they submit position reports.

[paulwilko10 0]

Some great answers, so thank you all for that.

 

The reason I asked is purely to see where there is the likelihood of turbulence.

I don't want to turn it off in ASN, just was wondering if it's possible to know where i am likely to hit it.

 

If ASN is injecting turbulence, then my guess would be it should be able to tell us where it will happen.

 

If that is left out to keep it realistic, then fine, but was just wondering if its possible

 

Thanks again all and it seems to have got our heads thinking :-)

 

Paul