Another type of graphic available to the user is the 3D Perspective Plot. The 3D plot is a 3-dimensional plot of the terrain on the computed results (Depth, water surface, velocity, etc.).
The HEC-RAS 3D Viewer was developed to help engineers convey hydraulic modeling results to decision-makers. The HEC-RAS 3D Viewer is accessed from either the HEC-RAS program or inside RAS Mapper. The 3D Viewer provides a three-dimensional visualization of HEC-RAS simulation results and terrain data.
To access the 3D Viewer through the HEC-RAS program interface, go to View | 3D View ... menu item or press the
3D Viewer button, shown below.
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298844/1/1605806432791/worddav2fdbc6fad29d1a7f2f0cfc094964e74e.png)
Figure 8 9. HEC-RAS Main Window with 3D Viewer Button.
To access the 3D Viewer through RAS Mapper, press the
3D Viewer button, shown below.
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298845/1/1605806433277/worddav610201a76fc925ae35a8a5a2e3e0cdf4.png)
Figure 8 10. 3D Viewer Access Button in HEC-RAS Mapper.
Then select the result to show in the 3D Viewer
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298846/1/1605806433312/worddav9fbc48db3c5156bf133730b55948fffd.png)
Another way to access the 3D Viewer is by right clicking on a particular result and selecting the View Result in 3D menu item
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298847/1/1605806433340/worddavd5b27657a593a392b025e7ee43981a60.png)
Figure 8 11. Selecting the 3D Viewer from HEC-RAS Mapper Menu.
The last way to access the 3D Viewer is by right clicking a particular result map and selecting the View Map in 3D Viewer menu item
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298848/1/1605806433378/worddav39149ecc130255bae9c93d01030e99d2.png)
Figure 8 12. Accessing 3D Viewer from a Result Map Layer.
Pre-processing Results for 3D Viewing
Performing any of the various ways to access the 3D Viewer will bring up a pre-proccessing window if this is the first time you have run the 3D Viewer or if you have cancelled pre-processing the last time you opened this result in the 3D Viewer.
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298968/1/1605806999946/worddavb02c1573f2c9fc3eb08bc368499ea201.png)
The 3D Viewer has to do much more processing compared to RAS Mapper to show a time step in the simulation. Pre-processing offloads the processing to a file in the same directory as the result file that was selected. It will be named the same except the extension will be sqlite.
![](/confluence/rasdocs/rasum/files/6.2/39298843/39298969/1/1605806999981/worddav500551789031cb9e747f46c932c4f53d.png)
Pre-processing will make subsequent loading for this result to be a smoother experience. It will also make playing the results animation smoother. Pre-processing is optional, press the Cancel button if you do not wish to pre-process at this time.