THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 1, 1995 TAG: 9510010057
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: HAMPTON LENGTH: Medium: 62 lines
The giant fans at NASA's oldest operating wind tunnel, a National Historic Landmark that has tested everything from space capsules to submarines, roared for the last time Friday.
The 30-by-60-foot facility at the NASA Langley Research Center became the agency's latest victim of budget cuts that center Director Paul Holloway said will close up to a third of Langley's 40-plus wind tunnels within five years.
``When you've spent this much time in a place, it becomes your home,'' said Sue Grafton, an aeronautical engineer for 34 years who has spent many hours of research in the tunnel.
The tunnel, dedicated in 1931, was the world's largest wind tunnel until 1945.
Its chief job has been to create low-speed wind conditions to test the aerodynamic qualities of aircraft at various angles.
The tunnel has been used to test models and full-sized aircraft ranging from World War II's P-51 Mustang to the Navy's F/A-18 Hornet.
But it also tested the Mercury space capsule and a 1950s-era submarine prototype.
Dana Dunham, chief of the center's Vehicle Dynamics Branch that uses the wind tunnel, said she's so accustomed to the roar that she doesn't always notice it.
``Sometimes, I'll call back and say, `Aren't you guys going to run today?' And they'll say, `We've been running all day,' '' she said.
The tunnel was named a National Historic Landmark in 1985.
Although the huge propellers made from Sitka spruce are the originals, the facility has modern computer equipment and video monitors.
Lee Beach, deputy director of NASA Langley, said the tunnel's closing won't stop low-speed aircraft testing.
``Obviously, there's a capacity decrease, because we're closing a facility,'' he said. ``But through our efforts to re-engineer how we do business, we have a mandate to become more productive in our facilities.''
Tests on full-scale aircraft will be transferred to California's Ames Research Center and its larger and faster subsonic wind tunnel complex.
But Beach said most of the old tunnel's work will be moved to a newer 14-by-22-foot tunnel at the Virginia center.
None of the old tunnel's workers will lose their jobs, Dunham said.
Langley officials haven't decided what to do with the tunnel, but it won't be torn down, partly because of asbestos in its floors and walls.
``It would cost a fortune to tear it down,'' said Don Riley, a retired engineer and the tunnel's unofficial historian.
``It's a great facility,'' he said. ``I hate to see it close.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sue Grafton, a research engineer at NASA Langley Research Center in
Hampton, stands in the agency's oldest operating wind tunnel, which
was shut down Friday because of budget cuts.
by CNB