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Mesh Oddities

A

archtx

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194
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unitedstates
I have successfully completed making some mesh for Costa Rica and other parts of Central America using SRTM3 data and SRTM4 data.
It results in making the mountains more detailed and interesting, however always creates problems at the airports. MROC ends up being on a "mesa" and some others down in a hole.

The default airports are at the correct location and elevation which means that this new topography data is in some cases lowering the terrain below the correct elevation at an airport and in other cases raising it. So why is this SRTM data less accurate than the FSX default data? I assumed it would be more accurate.
 
Hi,

How have you confirmed the airport's location and elevation? Only really reliable way to do it is to compare it to google earth or similar. I have found that most non-US airports that aren't Regional or International to be misplaced, sometimes sigificantly. Not necessarily MS fault, as they use the published data. But often the published data is unreliable, My experience has been that once these airports are moved to their correct location more often than not the surrounding terrain needs very little tweaking.
 
Yes, I used published data. However, it conforms almost exactly to Google Earth, other than elevation. I also have flying charts and topo maps to compare.

How do you go about tweaking the surrounding terrain?
 
U would need some good GIS tools to edit the DEM or simplify them around the airport like MS does.
In FS airports are completely flat. Airports are often not perfectly flat so MS smooths the terrain as it gets around the airport so that the DEM can match the airport's elevation.

ADE can change the elevation of the Airport. It also has a cool slopping flatness creating tool and it is free! you could slop the terrain to meet the airport (especially if you do not want to change the elevation from the stock setting) as well as change it's elevation within ADE.

Sean
 
Sean, thanks a bunch for that simple explanation. I have used ADE for several things, but admit to ignorance in some of the features you mentioned. Part of my problem is that the real airport isnt flat (few are!) which is exagerating the discrepancies.
 
I'm using version 1.37. I don't find any tools to modify the mesh around the airport....where do I need to look?
 
You will probably have to exclude the flattening of the airport. I use this with photo textures as you can not have a ms taxiway or apron that is not at the airport elevation.

If you are making a vector airport it will have to be flat but you could slope the area around to meet it's elevation.

Make a terrain poly
Flatten
Check the edit individual points.
Then you have to manually give each point/vertice an altitude.

Hint: to make a new vertice with poly selected with the selection tool hold down control button and select were you want the point.

Sean
 
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