Our Facilities

The National Wind Tunnel Facilities cover low speed, transonic, supersonic and hypersonic speeds across all sectors including Aerospace, Automotive, Civil, Rail and Environmental. Facilities are available to industry and academic users.

Automotive

Designation:
Open circuit, closed throat
Test Section Size:
1.92 (W) x 1.32 (H) x 3.6m (L)
Maximum Flow Speed:
40m/s (90 mph)

High Supersonic Tunnel (HSST)

University of Manchester

Designation:
Blow-down
Test Section Size:
0.3 x 0.3 x 1m
Nozzle diameter: 0.152m
Maximum Flow Speed:
1.2 km/s

T6 Piston Reflected Shock

University of Oxford

Designation:
Intermittent blowdown
Test Section Size:
0.9 x 0.9 x 1.2 m
Maximum Flow Speed:
8 km/s

High Density Tunnel

University of Oxford

Designation:
Heated Ludwieg Tube
Test Section Size:
Test flow size: 0.25 - 0..35 m (diameter).
Test section size: 2 m diameter, 1.4 m long
Maximum Flow Speed:
Mach 3,4,5,6,7 and 9

Low Density

University of Oxford

Designation:
Rarefied Flow
Test Section Size:
0.18m (diameter)
Maximum Flow Speed:
Mach 5.5 – 9

RJ Mitchell

University of Southampton

Designation:
Closed Return
Test Section Size:
3.6 x 2.5 x 10.5m
5:1 contraction ratio.
Maximum Flow Speed:
50 m/s

Anechoic

University of Southampton

Designation:
Anechoic
Test Section Size:
1 x 0.75 m
Anechoic Chamber Size: 8.15 x 5.5 x 4.75m.
Maximum Flow Speed:
80 m/s
Tow_Tank_Southampton_NWTF

Towing Tank

University of Southampton

Designation:
Towing and wave tank
Test Section Size:
138 m long x 6 m wide x 3.5 m deep with 0.5 m free board
Maximum Flow Speed:
Maximum Carriage Speed: 10 m/s

Environmental Flow (EnFlo)

University of Surrey

Designation:
Meteorological Wind Tunnel
Test Section Size:
20 x 3.5 x 1.5 m
Maximum Flow Speed:
0.5 ms¯¹ to 3 ms¯¹