The Aarhus Wind Tunnel Simulator II (AWSTS II) consists of an approximately 40 m³ environmental chamber housing a recirculating wind tunnel. It is used for studying a wide variety of research topics including dust resuspension, sand transport, Carbon Dioxide ice formation, volcanic ash behaviour etc. Also, characterisation and accelerated stress testing of instrumentation for Mars missions or high altitude terrestrial applications are being carried out.

Key physical parameters can be recreated such as:

• Air Temperature down to -60 deg C
• Sample temperature control down to -170 deg C
• Pressure from 1 bar to 10^-3 mbar
• Gas composition can be a mix of high purity gasses i.e. CO2, N2, He, …
• Control of relative Humidity from below a few % to fully saturated
• Wind flow up to 18 m/s with full (2m x 1m) cross section or much higher with reduced cross section
• and importantly the suspension/transport of dust or sand particulates

This facility utilizes a network based control and data logging system, where all important parameters are continuously recorded.

It employs a sophisticated 2 dimensional Laser Doppler Velocimeter for the quantifying and studying aerosol particles and flow.

For characterising boundary layers and measuring wind speeds when no particles can be used for seeding, we use an array of Pitot tubes with extraordinary high resolution.

Download the publication An Environmental Wind Tunnel Facility for Testing Meteorological Sensor Systems in pdf format.

Download the Wind Tunnel Fact Sheet here.