Nov 6, 2004, 11:14 AM
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Re: [pilotdave] No such thing as a Wind Tunnel!
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lol.. I am not denying that the way they are referred to now is a recognised label.... but when the first person called one a 'tunnel' they were a bit off the mark
Nov 6, 2004, 11:19 AM
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Re: [Paulipod] No such thing as a Wind Tunnel!
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When you are belly-flying in one, you are facing the relative wind, and so are, relatively to you, in a tunnel. As opposed to a tube when you observe from outisde. :)
Nov 6, 2004, 12:42 PM
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Re: [Paulipod] No such thing as a Wind Tunnel!
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Definition of Tunnel....
An underground or underwater passage. A passage through or under a barrier. Obsolete. The main flue on a chimney.
You can likely find a dictionary to support whichever definition most agrees with your proposition. I used m-w.com to garner:
Quote:
Etymology: Middle English tonel tube-shaped net, from Middle French, tun, from Old French, from tonne tun, from Medieval Latin tunna 1 : a hollow conduit or recess : TUBE, WELL
But my resource has an etymology that further supports wind tunnel as a correct use. QED. ;-)
-- Dave
billvon (D 16479)
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Nov 6, 2004, 10:14 PM
Post #9 of 36
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Re: [Paulipod] No such thing as a Wind Tunnel!
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Wind tunnels started out as windy horizontal passages used to test airfoils. For skydiving they rotated one 90 degrees. The name stuck.
Nov 9, 2004, 11:31 PM
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Re: [Bodyflight.Net] No such thing as a Wind Tunnel!
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If you want to bring open air flight simulators into the mix of a semantics thread on wind 'tunnels' then enjoy yourself.
What are you talking about..? I am talking about vwt's!
Actually I was just talking about chocolate, but in this point I was only differentiating between indoor and outdoor (that's where I thought you were going). The outdoor vwt's are even harder to tag with the label 'tunnel'. Of course I'll always bow to you expertise in this issue. Or, you really do mean all the different enclosed tunnels are blowers?.....
Nov 10, 2004, 4:41 AM
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Re: [rehmwa] No such thing as a Wind Tunnel!
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Rehmwa,
I love chocolate, we can talk about that all day long!
I think there could be a better name, in fact we MOSTLY describe them ourselves as body flying facilities. But really, the prop jobbie portables, even they provide a column/tunnel of air.
As I'm sure has been pointed out already: A tunnel can be defined as, A structure, installation, or facility incorporating apparatus to simulate flight conditions in one way or another, specially designed for testing or experimenting with power plants, or with aircraft, rockets, or other aerodynamically designed bodies, engine installations, or models; specifically, a wind tunnel.
More specifically however, I was talking about VWTs that SUCK. Which of course there are very few since the design itself causes instability in the air flow & test section.
No need to bow down.. you can throw money instead.
Current Stats: Operation VWTs World Wide: 8% Suckers 92% Blowers VWTs Currently Under Construction: 75% Suckers 25% Blowers
That will still only takes the sucker category to 26% of total facilities World Wide.
always a bad sign!! 
granted it's a bigger barrier to some of us then it is to others 
actually less than 10% of currently operational tunnels really suck
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