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This report describes a model water tunnel built in 1928 by the NACA to investigate the possibility of using water tunnels for aerodynamic investigations at large scales. The model tunnel is similar to an open-throat wind tunnel, but uses water for the working fluid.
The design of complicated structures often presents problems of extreme difficulty which are frequently insoluble. In many cases, however, the solution can be obtained by tests on suitable models. These model tests are becoming so important a part of the design of new engineering structures that their theory has become a necessary part of an engineer's knowledge. For balloons and airships water models are used. These are models about 1/30 the size of the airship hung upside down and filled with water under pressure. The theory shows that the stresses in such a model are the same as in the actual airship. In the design of the Army Semirigid Airship RS-1 no satisfactory way was found to calculate the stresses in the keel due to the changing shape of the bag. For this purpose a water model with a flexible keel was built and tested. This report gives the theory of the design, construction, and testing of such a water model.
Nongray greenhouse model of Venus atmosphere
The hydrodynamic characteristics of a 1/10-size powered dynamic model of the XP5Y-1 flying boat were determined in Langley tank no. 1. Stable take-offs were possible at all practicable positions of the center of gravity and flap deflections. An increase in gross load from 123.5 to 150.0 pounds (21.5 percent) had only a slight effect on the stable range for take-off. A decrease in forward acceleration from 3.0 to 1.0 feet per second per second had only a very small effect on the stable range for take-off. In general, the landings were free from skipping except at trims below 6 deg where one skip was encountered at an aft position of the center of gravity. The model porpoised during the landing runout at all positions of the center of gravity when landed at trims above 10 deg. Spray in the propellers was light at the design gross load, and was not considered excessive,at a gross load of 136.0 pounds.
Hydrodynamic models in coastal and estuarine systems are typically constrained by sparse bathymetry, boundary, and validation data, especially in regions where field campaigns are costly or impractical. Here we develop and test a fully satellite-driven framework for hydrodynamic modeling in South Africa’s Langebaan Lagoon without using any local in situ measurements. Bathymetry is derived by training multispectral Sentinel-2 reflectance against ICESat-2 ATL24 photon-derived depths using an XGBoost model optimized with Bayesian search. The final satellite-derived bathymetry reproduces independent ATL24 points with RMSE = 0.45 m and R 2 = 0.97. This bathymetry was used in a depth-averaged Delft3D Flexible Mesh model driven at the open boundary by TPXO tidal harmonics and by ERA5 winds. We validate modeled water surface elevation against 16 SWOT low-rate (250 m, unsmoothed) passes in 2023. SWOT–model comparisons yield an overall RMSE of 0.11 m and R 2 = 0.61, with typical point differences <0.10 m (∼7% of the 1.5 m tidal range), and showed consistent spatial gradients in water level from the offshore boundary, through Saldanha Bay, and into the lagoon. At the offshore boundary, TPXO and SWOT sea surface heights agree closely (R 2 = 0.86). A simple phase adjustment of ∼26,min between TPXO and SWOT lowers the RMSE from 0.18,m to 0.11,m, showing that phase offset accounts for some of the discrepancy, with additional errors likely linked to non-tidal signals. Our results demonstrate that combining passive optical, photon-counting LiDAR, radar interferometry, and global tidal/atmospheric models enables robust, transferrable hydrodynamic modeling in data-scarce coastal systems, offering a cost-effective pathway for monitoring.
Cavitation damage in high-temperature liquid metal pumps for Rankine cycle space power plants studied in water model
Tests of a model of the XJR2F-Y amphibian were made in Langley tank no. to determine the spray characteristics and the take-off and landing stability. At a gross load of 22,000 pounds full size, spray entered the propeller disk only at a very narrow range of speeds. The spray striking the flaps was not excessive and no appreciable wetting of the tail surfaces was noted. The trim limits of stability appeared to be satisfactory and the upper-limit porpoising was not violent. The stable range of center-of-gravity locations with flaps set 20deg was well aft of the desired operating range. However, with flaps up, the forward limit was about 18 percent mean aerodynamic chord and the aft limit about 28.5 percent mean aerodynamic chord at a load of 26,000 pounds and with elevators deflected -10deg. Under these conditions the location of the step is considered satisfactory. Tests showed that the effect of water in the nose-wheel well would be to move the forward limit aft about 2-percent mean aerodynamic chord. Without ventilation of the main step, the model skipped during landing at most trims, but this skipping was not violent. With the ventilation, the model skipped lightly only at trims where the afterbody keel was approximately parallel to the water (around 7.5 deg).
Model tests for determination of structural response of Apollo Command Module to water impact
Water landings of winged reentry configuration having outboard folding wing panels - models used
An experimental investigation was made to determine impact water pressures, accelerations, and landing dynamics of a 1/4-scale dynamic model of the command module of the Apollo spacecraft. A scaled-stiffness aft heat shield was used on the model to simulate the structural deflections of the full-scale heat shield. Tests were made on water to obtain impact pressure data at a simulated parachute letdown (vertical) velocity component of approximately 30 ft/sec (9.1 m/sec) full scale. Additional tests were made on water, sand, and hard clay-gravel landing surfaces at simulated vertical velocity components of 23 ft/sec (7.0 m/sec) full scale. Horizontal velocity components investigated ranged from 0 to 50 ft/sec (15 m/sec) full scale and the pitch attitudes ranged from -40 degrees to 29 degrees. Roll attitudes were O degrees, 90 degrees, and 180 degrees, and the yaw attitude was 0 degrees.
Model tests for determination of structural response of Apollo command module to water impact
Models of two types of high-speed surface craft were tested in Langley tank no. 1 to obtain rough-water data for an evaluation by the David Taylor .Model Basin of the relative merits of the designs. Time-history records were obtained of trim, rise, and normal acceleration at two points in the hulls for various speeds and two sizes of waves.
The author first sets forth some observations about the theory of models. Then he established certain general criteria for the construction of dynamically similar models in water and in air, through reference to the perfect fluid equations and to the ones pertaining to viscous flow. It is, in addition, pointed out that there are more cases in which the analogy is possible than is commonly supposed.
Apollo spacecraft landing simulation to determine impact water pressures, accelerations, and landing dynamics
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Band models for high temperature water vapor and carbon dioxide
Water landing characteristics of winged missile scale model