User`s guide

Cambridge Aero Explorer User’s Guide
Note that the height of the start cylinder is defined as height above the ground. The
top of the start cylinder is the height of the start cylinder plus the elevation of the
start point.
?? Check where the trace crosses the finish line or enters the finish cylinder. Also check
the altitude against the top of the finish gate.
?? Use the “Advanced…” button to bring up the dialog containing the detailed analysis
of the flight. Here you can easily see how the analysis was calculated. And quickly
find why the task was not completed.
Measuring with the cursor
While the task analysis can give speeds and distances over an entire task, it is often
desirable to analyze a small section of the flight trace. The Cambridge Aero Explorer
provides a measurement cursor for this purpose. You can use the measurement cursor for
the following purposes:
?? To display the speed and distance over a single task leg.
?? To analyze a thermal. The program can determine altitude gained, average rate of
climb, drift distance and approximate wind speed.
?? To perform some preliminary task planning. You can measure between a series of
navpoints displayed on the screen and calculate the total distance of a task.
To start using the measurement cursor, use the following steps.
1. Display a flight in the Display pane. Right-click in the plot pane and choose
Measure, or you can select the ruler icon from the toolbar. The cursor becomes a
ruler.
2. Move the cursor to either a point on the trace, or to a navpoint. Click and drag from
the point or navpoint to another trace point or navpoint. As the cursor moves to other
trace points, you can see the analysis of the difference between the two points
displayed in a small window in the upper left hand corner of the screen.
3. Move the cursor to another point on the trace and release the mouse button. You can
continue with the measurements by moving the mouse pointer to another trace point
and clicking and dragging to the next point. The analysis window shows an analysis
between the first point selected in the measurement sequence and the final point
selected.
4. When finished measuring, click the mouse in an empty area of the screen.
The figure below shows the analysis of a thermal.