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How to Find Thermals for an RC Glider

Thermal soaring is one of the more advanced techniques in an R/C glider pilot's arsenal. The main challenge lies in the fact that to be successful the pilot must be able to harness forces of nature that are invisible such as wind and thermals. Practice is essential to success; finding thermals may be easy enough but staying in them and harnessing them as a means of lift is no simple task. That being said, once you have found a thermal and learned its boundaries and tendencies you will have a relatively easy time keeping your glider aloft.

Instructions

- 1
  Pick a warm day with little wind. The best time to go is midday when the sun is at its maximum heat.
- 2
  Find a large, flat open area in which to launch and fly the glider.
- 3
  Look around before flying for areas where a thermal probably exists. Some indicators of a thermal are birds circling above a certain area and heat-haze rising from the ground.
- 4
  Launch your glider and adjust the trim settings. It is important for the glider to fly straight without constant rudder adjustments. Adjust the vertical trim so the glider descends as slowly as possible without stalling; this is the ideal setting for circling in thermals.
- 5
  Fly your glider into areas with suspected thermal activity. One of the main signs there is a thermal is when your glider turns off course. That is why it is so important to have the tail rudder trimmed so the glider flies straight. Once a thermal has been found, fly in wide circles, following the thermal slowly downwind. Tighten the circles as you go to get the maximum lift out of the center of the thermals.
- 6
  Move out of the thermal when it begins to weaken. Glide back downwind and try to find another thermal by repeating step 5. Using this technique it is possible to stay aloft until the sun gets to the point where it is too low to generate the heat required for strong thermals.

Aviation