Visual simulation of hydraulic erosion

Abstract

New algorithm for hydraulic terrain erosion is introduced. The main goal of the paper is to provide technique that is based on physics and allows for high level of control. We divided the erosion process into four independent steps that can be applied independently to achieve high level of realism. The erosion algorithm is based on the ability of water to dissolve material that is then transported to another locations. Because of the evaporation the sediment capacity of water volume is exceeded and the material is deposited. This kind of material transport significantly influences the terrain morphology. The algorithm has wide area of applications; we describe here water sources, drying up the plashes, as well as fictive rain on the surface of Mars.