What are the advantages and disadvantages of terrain and mesh in ORD?

Question

Hi everyone, 
 Have a nice day, 
 
 I'm starter of ORD, and I have some questions about terrain and mesh, please help for my understanding. 
 1. Could you please help to explain the different between terrain and mesh? 
 2. And, what are the advantages and disadvantages of terrain and mesh in ORD? 
 3. Why do we need to convert terrain to mesh? 
 Thank you so much.

eddiegiese · Accepted Answer

A terrain is a 3D planar element, but it does not have a depth/thickness. Think of it like a piece of paper that has points jutting up and down on it. A mesh, on the other hand, is a 3D volumetric element that does have a depth/thickness. Think of common 3D shapes, such as bricks/blocks. 
 You can calculate the volume of a mesh, but you cannot calculate the volume of a terrain by itself. This is why there are terrain to terrain volume tools. In this case, it is essentially making an (invisible) mesh and then measuring the volume of that. 
 A terrain cannot have vertical surfaces either, but a mesh can. Because of the way a terrain triangulates, there needs to be some horizontal difference between points, even if very small (for example 0.01 ft).

What are the advantages and disadvantages of terrain and mesh in ORD?

Top Replies