The hypersonic wind tunnel at NASA's Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio, is shown in this undated photo. The tunnel is designed to test hypersonic aircraft and is capable of simulating speeds up to Mach 7 and altitudes up to 120,000 feet. (NASA)
The Air Force may revive a shuttered wind tunnel to test hypersonic systems in realistic atmospheric conditions, according to a recent offer published on the government contracting site.
The service’s test center at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is researching whether there are any contractors, including small businesses, to lead a project to reactivate a NASA hypersonic test center in Sandusky, Ohio.
Located at the Neil Armstrong Test Facility, the tunnel is capable of testing hypersonic vehicles and engines at speeds up to Mach 7 and altitudes up to 120,000 feet, according to NASA.
Hypersonic flight is generally defined as speeds at or beyond Mach 5. The F-35 Lightning II’s top speed, by contrast, is Mach 1.6, or about 1,200 mph, according to Lockheed Martin.
Hypersonic weapons are considered key to future military conflicts, with faster speeds giving targets less time to evade or defend themselves, an Atlantic Council report last year said.
The wind tunnel reactivation process is expected to take 18 to 24 months, according to the solicitation published last week. Responses are due by March 19.
The facility is designed to create a synthetic air test medium that chemically and thermodynamically mimics the composition of the atmospheric air, according to the document.
An inventory and inspection of the wind tunnel indicates that it is still viable, the solicitation states.
“The facility has been in a mothballed status since 2007, and its reactivation presents a unique opportunity to fill a critical national testing capability gap,” the announcement says.
It also notes that the Pentagon is committed to the development of scramjet technologies in support of hypersonic flight.
Unlike conventional jet engines, which use moving parts like compressors and turbines for combustion, a scramjet uses external air to combust and ignite fuel, making them ideally suited for hypersonic flight within the atmosphere, according to NASA.
The hypersonic wind tunnel at NASA's Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio, is shown in this undated photo. The facility was designed for research, development and acceptance testing of hypersonic aircraft systems. (NASA)
