SMS 13.5 Beta Out Now! 

The latest beta release of the Surface-water Modeling System (SMS) 13.5 introduces powerful enhancements designed to streamline workflows, improve performance, and expand modeling capabilities. Whether you’re working with ADCIRC, CMS-Flow, or conceptual model development in the Map Module, SMS 13.5 beta brings meaningful updates that can save time and improve model quality.

Here are some of the most impactful new features to explore.

Faster and Smarter Polygon Editing

One standout improvement is the new option to select all arcs that make up a polygon. With a simple right-click on a polygon, SMS now automatically selects all associated arcs—including boundary arcs and holes.

Previously, users relied on tools like Select Intersecting Objects, which could be slow and inefficient. This new functionality dramatically improves editing speed when working with complex geometries, especially in large projects with many interconnected features.

Additionally, SMS now includes both the Select Polygon Tool and the Universal Select Tool in the Map Module, giving users more flexibility when navigating and editing feature objects.

Enhanced ADCIRC Workflow and Boundary Condition Tools

SMS 13.5 beta introduces several major upgrades for ADCIRC users:

• Levee Crest Definition from Arc Elevations: Easily define levee crests directly from arc node elevations, improving consistency between geometry and boundary conditions.

• Improved Levee Diagnostics: New tools help identify inconsistencies between mesh elevations and levee crest elevations, reducing setup errors.

• Boundary Condition Mapping Diagnostics: SMS now flags problematic boundary condition mappings, helping users quickly locate and fix issues.

• Support for Non-Periodic River Boundary Conditions: Users can now apply constant flow rates or hydrographs, with SMS automatically distributing flow across boundary nodes based on conveyance weighting.

These enhancements significantly improve reliability and transparency when setting up complex coastal and riverine models.

Major Performance Boost for fort.13 Dataset Creation

Creating fort.13 datasets in ADCIRC has been dramatically improved, with orders-of-magnitude performance gains when handling wind reduction values. For large-scale coastal models, this update alone can save substantial preprocessing time.

Sediment Mapping Coverage in CMS-Flow

For users working with sediment transport, SMS 13.5 beta introduces sediment mapping coverages in CMS-Flow. This allows spatially varying sediment properties to be defined more efficiently using the familiar coverage workflow, improving both usability and model accuracy.

New PTM Interface (Beta)

SMS 13.5 also includes a new Particle Tracking Model (PTM) interface, currently in beta. This update aims to modernize particle tracking workflows, making it easier to define, run, and visualize particle simulations within SMS.

Why Try SMS 13.5 Beta?

The SMS 13.5 beta focuses on efficiency, diagnostics, and expanded modeling tools. From faster geometry editing to improved ADCIRC workflows and sediment modeling capabilities, these updates help users build more robust models with less effort.

If you’re working on complex hydraulic or coastal projects, exploring these new features can give you a significant advantage. Get the SMS 13.5 beta today!