wind tunnel

American  

[wind] / wɪnd /

noun

Aeronautics.

1. a tubular chamber or structure in which a steady current of air can be maintained at a controlled velocity, equipped with devices for measuring and recording forces and moments on scale models of complete aircraft or of their parts or, sometimes, on full-scale aircraft or their parts.

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wind tunnel British  

/ wɪnd /

noun

1. a chamber for testing the aerodynamic properties of aircraft, aerofoils, etc, in which a current of air can be maintained at a constant velocity

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wind tunnel Scientific  

1. A chamber through which air is blown at controlled speeds to simulate the motion of objects placed in the chamber through the air, used to study the aerodynamic properties of objects such as automobiles, airplanes, and missiles.

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Etymology

Origin of wind tunnel

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15

Example Sentences

Now that we’re through the wind tunnel of adolescence, I’m happy to share them.

From The Wall Street Journal

It is the force that builds the wind tunnel.

From The Wall Street Journal

There were wind tunnels, airstrips, and other facilities where researchers tested airplane parts and theories of math and science.

From Literature

In the study, Parziale's team introduced krypton gas into a wind tunnel and used lasers to ionize it.

From Science Daily

He also created a tiny wind tunnel for some of the experiments, so that the physicists could analyze the role of ambient breeze in the worm's target success rate.

From Science Daily