engineering

Full-Scale Wind Tunnel

Full-Scale Wind Tunnel is a engineering topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Full-Scale Wind Tunnel rather than just read about it. In short: The Full-Scale Tunnel (abbreviated FST, also known as the 30-by 60-Foot Tunnel) was a wind tunnel at NASA's Langley Research Center. It was a National Historic Landmark.

Key takeaways

Full-Scale Wind Tunnel belongs to engineering; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Full-Scale Wind Tunnel to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Full-Scale Wind Tunnel from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Full-Scale Tunnel (abbreviated FST, also known as the 30-by 60-Foot Tunnel) was a wind tunnel at NASA's Langley Research Center. It was a National Historic Landmark. In 1929, National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics began construction of the world's first full-scale wind tunnel, where high-performance airplane would be tested. The design team was led by Smith J. DeFrance. The tunnel was completed in 1931 (dedicated 27 May) at a cost just under $900,000. It was a double-return tunnel capable of moving air at speeds up to 118 miles/hour (190 km/h) through its circuit. It had a 30 ft by 60 ft (9.1 m x 18.3 m) open throat, which is capable of testing aircraft with spans of 40 ft (12.2 m). The wind tunnel was a double-return, atmospheric pressure tunnel with two fans powered by 4,000 hp electric motors. The Vought O3U-1 biplane observation airplane was the first complete airplane tested in the tunnel. After that, it was used to test virtually every high-performance aircraft used by the United States in World War II. For much of the war, when it was operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the full-scale tunnel was the only tunnel in the free world large enough to perform these tests. After the war, many types of aircraft were tested in the tunnel including the Harrier jump jet fighter, the F-16, the American supersonic transport, the Space Shuttle and Lunar Landing Test Vehicle. During the 1950s and 1960s, the tunnel was modified and upgraded several times. The principal improvement was adding the ability to test free-flying scale models in the test throat. The wind tunnel was in use through the 2000s, testing procedures such as free-flight and high angle of attack. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1985. However, despite this designation and the efforts of some aviation historians, demolition of the tunnel began in 2010. It was documented before its demolition, with the fan blades being salvaged for display. In 2014 its landmark designation was withdrawn and it was removed from the National Register of Historic Places.

References

External links Langley Full-Scale Tunnel: The Largest University-Operated Wind Tunnel In The World, at Old Dominion University Aviation: From Sand Dunes to Sonic Booms, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary NASA Langley Cultural Resources: Full Scale Tunnel

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Full-Scale Wind Tunnel

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Full-Scale Wind Tunnel claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In engineering, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Full-Scale Wind Tunnel before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Full-Scale Wind Tunnel ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Full-Scale Wind Tunnel

In research: Full-Scale Wind Tunnel appears in engineering research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Full-Scale Wind Tunnel in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Full-Scale Wind Tunnel is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Aerospace research institutes, Aviation research institutes, Buildings and structures in Hampton, Virginia, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Full-Scale Wind Tunnel outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Full-Scale Wind Tunnel in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Full-Scale Wind Tunnel means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Full-Scale Wind Tunnel out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Full-Scale Wind Tunnel in simple terms?

The Full-Scale Tunnel (abbreviated FST, also known as the 30-by 60-Foot Tunnel) was a wind tunnel at NASA's Langley Research Center. It was a National Historic Landmark.

Why does Full-Scale Wind Tunnel matter?

Because it connects several engineering ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Full-Scale Wind Tunnel?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Full-Scale Wind Tunnel.