The following information is provided courtesy of the "Take Off!" project at the Massachusetts Corporation for Educational Telecommunications. The text and images were adapted for the web from the FAA publication "Aviation Science Activities for Elementary Grades" by MCET. All rights reserved.

EQUIPMENT
Piece of furnace pipe about 4 feet long
Piece of pliofilm, acetate, or some other transparent material for the tunnel window
Separations from an egg carton or similar separators
Scotch tape
Corrugated box, the same size as the egg-carton separators
Small electric fan
Book-binding tape or similar adhesive tape
2 small hooks with screw ends, the kind used for hanging cups
Metal shears

DESCRIPTION
Open the egg carton separators and reinforce the corners with scotch tape. Open the corrugated box on both ends and push the flaps inside the box to make the box stronger. Fit the egg carton separators into one end of the box. They should fit snugly. With a pair of metal shears, cut a window near one end of the furnace pipe. Cover the window with the transparent material, securing it to the pipe with book-binding tape. Fasten the hooks in the pipe so that when the glider is suspended from the top hook it can be observed from the window.

Set the egg carton separators flush against the furnace pipe, at the end opposite the window. Set the electric fan inside the box containing the egg carton separators. These separators "honeycomb" or straighten the swirling air currents from the electric fan.

When you suspend your glider in the wind tunnel you can examine the aerodynamic effects of control surfaces (ailerons, elevator, and rudders) and different glider designs. Also examine what happens when you change the airspeed, or add weights (pennies are good) to different positions on your glider, or change your glider's design.

© Copyright 1996, MCET. All rights reserved.