Article
Article
Wind tunnel
Article By:
Joppa, Robert G. Department of Aeronautics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
Maydew, Randall C. Aerodynamics Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
McBride, Donald D. Experimental Aerodynamics, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Shramo, Daniel J. Glenn Research Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Cleveland, Ohio.
Last reviewed:June 2020
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.746800
Show previous versions
- Wind tunnel, published January 2014:Download PDF
Get Adobe Acrobat Reader
A duct in which the effects of airflow past objects can be determined. The steady-state forces on a body held still in moving air are the same as those when the body moves through still air, given the same body shape, speed, and air properties. Scaling laws permit the use of models rather than full-scale aircraft. Models are less costly and may be modified more easily than full-scale, production-level vehicles or aircraft, and in the cases of flight, conditions may be simulated that would be impossible or dangerous (Fig. 1). See also: Air; Aircraft; Aircraft design; Airframe
The content above is only an excerpt.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information
