title: Simulating fluid flow over a heightmap
body: <p>I am looking for a way to approximate a volume of fluid moving over a heightmap. The easiest solution I can think of is to approximate it as a large number of non-drawn spheres, of small diameter (&lt;0.1m). I would then place a visible plane representing the surface of the water on "top" of the spheres, at the locations they came to rest. To my knowledge, no managed physics engines contain a built in fluid simulator, hence the question.</p>
  
  <p>Implementation would consist of using a physics engine such as JigLibX, which is capable of simulating the motion of the spheres. To determine the height of the planes, I was thinking of averaging the maximum height of each sphere that is on the top layer of a grouping. </p>
  
  <p>I dont expect performance to be great, but would it be approachable for real time? If not, could I use this simulation to pre-bake lines of flow? </p>
  
  <p>I hope this makes sense, I really want opinions/suggestions as to whether this is feasible, or if there is a better way of approaching this.</p>
  
  <p>Thanks for any help, Venatu  </p>
  
  <p>(If its relevant, my target platform is XNA 4.0, using C#. Windows only at this point in time, so PhysX/Havok are possibilities for the simulation, but I would prefer a managed solution)</p>