Plasma Wind Tunnel. Exterior view of the SCIROCCO Plasma Wind Tunnel (PWT) facility at CIRA,Italy's aerospace research centre. The PWT generates a jet of plasma (super-heated ionised gas) to replicate the conditions experienced by spacecraft when they re-enter Earth's atmosphere. The jet can be up to 2 metres wide,reach temperatures of over 10,000 degrees Celsius,and speeds of Mach 12. The power requirements are a massive 70 MW (megawatts). The PWT itself is only a few metres long,though a large array of support buildings and equipment is needed. The PWT is used to test thermal protection materials used in the heat shields of spacecraft. CIRA,founded in 1984,is in Padua,Italy | |
Lizenzart: | Lizenzpflichtig |
Credit: | Science Photo Library / Sorrentino, Pasquale |
Bildgröße: | 5132 px × 3423 px |
Modell-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
Eigentums-Rechte: | nicht erforderlich |
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