[ TomIrvine - 2 - 10:10:36 ]
RE: [waltermellon] how does icing affect alien space craft
Since I have never tested any alien space craft and I have never seen any, the answer is I don't know.

[ Alan - 3 - 10:12:40 ]
How many accidents per year are due to aircraft icing?

[ Gary - 4 - 10:14:24 ]
Is the IRT the biggest tunnel or fastest tunnel at LeRC?

[ TomIrvine - 5 - 10:16:09 ]
RE: [Alan] How many accidents per year are due to aircraft icing?
We have to distinguish between inflight icing and ground icing. Ground icing has not caused any significant accidents for a number of years. There have been two significant accidents of late. The average is less than one a year.

[ TomIrvine - 6 - 10:17:35 ]
RE: [Gary] Is the IRT the biggest tunnel or fastest tunnel at LeRC?
It is neither. It is a low speed wind tunnel. We have tunnels capable of Mach 6. Our other major wind tunnel used for engine noise research has a test section that is twice the size of the icing research wind tunnel. It is the largest icing research wind tunnel in the world dedicated to the study of icing.

[ Alan - 7 - 10:19:35 ]
How are jet contrails related to icing?

[ TomIrvine - 8 - 10:21:36 ]
RE: [Alan] How are jet contrails related to icing?
They are not specificallyh related to aircraft icing in terms of icing being a danger to aircraft. The contrails form when the water droplets turn to crystals. At the altitude where contrails form you would not necessarily have aircraft icing. The temperatures are typically very cold.

[ Sharon - 9 - 10:28:23 ]
How can a private company test in the icing tunnel?

[ RayCastner - 10 - 10:31:15 ]
RE: [Sharon] How can a private company test in the icing tunnel?
E-mail Tom Irvine at Thomas.B.Irvine@lerc.nasa.gov.

[ Susan - 11 - 10:36:06 ]
How thick are the wedges, and what material are they made of?

[ Jean - 12 - 10:38:01 ]
Can you fit a full-scale air plane in your facility?

[ RayCastner - 13 - 10:38:17 ]
RE: [Susan] How thick are the wedges, and what material are they made of?
The wedges are 2 feet thick and they are made of a fibergglass material similar to what you would use in your house. It was chosen for its property of absorbing sound waves.

[ RayCastner - 14 - 10:39:47 ]
RE: [Jean] Can you fit a full-scale air plane in your facility?
Similar to the icing research tunnel it is rare to testa full sized airplane. Typically we do a 1/7th scale exhaust nozzle. You might bring in the propulsion system.

[ Hikmat - 15 - 10:41:07 ]
Does in glight icing occur mainly when the plane takes off or lands

[ Hikmat - 16 - 10:41:47 ]
sorry meant in flight

[ TomIrvine - 17 - 10:46:42 ]
RE: [Hikmat] Does in glight icing occur mainly when the plane takes off or lands
It occurs during both but is more dangerous during landing as pilots are usually decreasing power and airspeed then. And if icing occurs, the plane is much harder to fly.

[ Bob - 18 - 11:11:46 ]
Does the tunnel simulate altitude?

[ Alan - 19 - 11:12:14 ]
Will NAS (numerical aerodynamics simulation) and super computers ever replace wind tunnels?

[ Jean - 20 - 11:12:21 ]
How do you convert from an 8x6 tunnel to a 9x15?

[ BobFreedman - 21 - 11:13:50 ]
RE: [Bob] Does the tunnel simulate altitude?
This tunnel does nto simulate altitude. We do have tunnels that do. It is an atmospheric tunnel. The atmospheric pressure is determined by the wind going through the tunnel.

[ BobFreedman - 22 - 11:16:02 ]
RE: [Alan] Will NAS (numerical aerodynamics simulation) and super computers ever replace wind tunnels?
I'm sure the people who work on that type of technology have that as a goal. But a test pilot wants his plane tested in a wind tunnel. They need to be tested to make sure they work as advertised. A wind tunnel probably won't be replaced in the near future. It is just too dangerous.

[ BobFreedman - 23 - 11:17:28 ]
RE: [Jean] How do you convert from an 8x6 tunnel to a 9x15?
This is not a conversion. It is two separate wind tunnels. There is a front leg and a back let separated by distance. The air in the 9 x 15 wind tunnel is run through the 8 x 6.

[ Albert - 24 - 11:17:46 ]
Why are fluids compressible at supersonic wind speeds?

[ BobFreedman - 25 - 11:18:52 ]
RE: [Albert] Why are fluids compressible at supersonic wind speeds?
I'm afraid that question is beyond me. My background is not aerodynamics.