Smoke Plume

Smoke Plume sends a column of billowing smoke up from the top of an object, the way it rises from a chimney, a campfire or a volcano. The plume widens and thins as it climbs, rolls with soft billows, and can bend in a crosswind or glow with firelight at its base.

How it works

The smoke follows the classic theory of a rising plume: it climbs quickly at first and slower as it mixes with the surrounding air, and it gets wider the higher it goes, so it also grows fainter. Swirling motion that rolls without bunching up gives the billows, and each puff has a ragged edge, so no two look alike. Every puff is lit from above with a bright rim on the side facing the light, and dense smoke darkens whatever is behind it instead of just glowing. With Heat raised, the base glows like firelight and cools quickly as the smoke rises. With Wind, the column bends over in a curve that grows stronger with height.

Settings

• Particle Count: how many puffs make up the plume.
• Height and Spread: how high the plume rises and how wide its source is.
• Turbulence: the strength of the billowing swirl.
• Heat: the glowing, fire-lit base.
• Wind: the crosswind that bends the column.
• Smoke Color.

Use it for

Chimneys, volcanoes, engines, campfires, moody industrial scenes. Pair it with the Fire effect underneath or with Volumetric Fog at ground level.