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xa-snow

xa-snow is a standalone plugin by hotbso that overlays real-world snow coverage on X-Plane 12 scenery. It downloads accumulated snow depth data from NOAA and applies it to the simulation in real time.

Background

  • Developer: hotbso (Holger Teutsch), originally by zodiac1214
  • Repository: github.com/hotbso/xa-snow (open source, LGPL-2.1)
  • Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux (native binaries)
  • Compatibility: X-Plane 12

xa-snow replaces X-Plane's uniform regional snow with location-specific coverage based on actual weather data. The plugin is actively maintained with regular releases.

Features

  • NOAA snow data: Downloads 6-hour accumulated snow depth forecasts covering the entire globe
  • Spatial interpolation: Overcomes X-Plane's limitation of uniform regional snow coverage at 0.25° lat/lon resolution
  • Historical snow: Access archived snow data for specific dates (365-day archive)
  • Auto update: Optionally updates snow coverage during flight as you move across regions
  • Runway friction: Adjustable runway ice behavior via "Lock Elsa Up" option (reduces runway friction in X-Plane 12.4.x+)
  • Manual weather override: Forces snow downloads even when using manual weather (default: skips download to preserve summer scenery)

Per-Scenery Configuration

Scenery developers can include xa-snow.cfg files to fine-tune snow behavior for specific airports or regions.

Value in Flight Simulation

X-Plane's built-in snow is applied uniformly across large regions — either everything is covered or nothing is. xa-snow brings seasonal realism by showing snow where it actually exists: snow-covered Alps next to green valleys, realistic treeline transitions, and accurate coastal snow boundaries. Combined with real weather, this creates convincing winter operations.

Installation

Download: GitHub Releases

Extract the ZIP file to Resources/plugins/. After the initial installation, SkunkCrafts Updater handles automatic updates (PROD or BETA channel).

Linux Notes

Since v2.3.1, the Linux binary links against libcurl4-gnutls for better compatibility with Steam/Proton environments. On Debian-based systems:

sudo apt install libcurl4-gnutls-dev

No other Linux-specific issues are known.

Sources