THREE.PassNode: Depth texture is not available for this pass

Error message

THREE.PassNode: Depth texture is not available for this pass.

What it means

Thrown by PassNode.getTexture('depth') when no depth texture was registered for the pass. PassNode only creates a depth texture when its scope is DEPTH or `options.depthBuffer !== false`; otherwise `_textures['depth']` is never populated. Requesting the depth output then fails.

Source

Thrown at src/nodes/display/PassNode.js:610

		return this._mrt;

	}

	/**
	 * Returns the texture for the given output name.
	 *
	 * @param {string} name - The output name to get the texture for.
	 * @return {Texture} The texture.
	 */
	getTexture( name ) {

		let texture = this._textures[ name ];

		if ( texture === undefined ) {

			if ( name === 'depth' ) {

				throw new Error( 'THREE.PassNode: Depth texture is not available for this pass.' );

			}

			const refTexture = this.renderTarget.texture;

			texture = refTexture.clone();
			texture.name = name;

			this._textures[ name ] = texture;

			this.renderTarget.textures.push( texture );

		}

		return texture;

	}

View on GitHub (pinned to da05705fa3)

Solutions

Construct the PassNode with depth enabled: do not set `depthBuffer: false`, or pass an explicit `depthTexture` in options.
Ensure the pass scope is DEPTH if the pass exists solely to capture depth.
Before calling getTexture('depth'), check `pass.renderTarget.depthTexture !== null`.

Example fix

// before
const pass = passNode( renderer, PassNode.COLOR, { depthBuffer: false } );
const depth = pass.getTexture( 'depth' );

// after
const pass = passNode( renderer, PassNode.COLOR );
const depth = pass.getTexture( 'depth' );

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

function assertDepthAvailable( pass ) {
  if ( pass.renderTarget.depthTexture === null ) {
    throw new Error( 'PassNode has no depth texture; create it with depth enabled.' );
  }
}

// before:
assertDepthAvailable( pass );
const depth = pass.getTexture( 'depth' );

Type guard

const passHasDepth = ( pass ) => pass.renderTarget.depthTexture !== null;

Prevention

Create passes that read depth with depth enabled (no depthBuffer:false) or an explicit depthTexture.
Check renderTarget.depthTexture before calling getTexture('depth').
Keep depth requirements documented per pass in your post-processing graph.

When it happens

Trigger: Creating a PassNode/post-processing pass with `depthBuffer: false` (or omitting it in a context where it defaults off) and later calling `pass.getTexture('depth')`, or using a depth-output node against a pass that was not given a depthTexture.

Common situations: Post-processing graphs that read depth (e.g. depth-of-field, fog, screen-space effects) wired to a pass created without depth; reusing a pass instance after toggling its depth buffer off for performance; passing a custom depthTexture that is null.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of mrdoob/three.js@da05705fa3 (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/40baa9a6279637cb. Report an issue: GitHub.