# F1 Wind Tunnel Anatomy

A crafted cutaway of a Formula 1 wind tunnel: the fan that makes the wind, the loop that smooths it, and how teams tune a 60% model car for grip or speed

By greenlig

Topic: Sport

[Open the interactive Jig](https://ask.jig.com/j/MEiZ2E7BBpNa)

## Guide

### 1. A storm in a loop

This is a Formula 1 wind tunnel, cut open so you can see inside\. The blue streaks are the air\. It races round a closed loop, past a model car that never moves\. Drag anywhere to turn the drawing\.

Teams test a model at 60% of real size, packed with hundreds of sensors\.

### 2. The fan makes the wind

One giant fan at the back of the loop pushes all the air\. It is about 5 metres across and is driven by an electric motor of around 2 megawatts\. Slide the fan speed and watch the air answer\.

At full speed the air in the test section moves at about 50 metres per second, roughly 180 km/h\.

### 3. Turning the corners

Air does not like sharp bends\. Curved turning vanes in every corner steer it round smoothly, like lanes on a curved road\. The fan's work also warms the air, so a cooler keeps its temperature steady\.

Steady temperature matters because warm air is thinner, and that would change the forces measured on the car\.

### 4. Calm, then squeeze

Next the air passes a honeycomb and fine mesh screens that iron out swirls\. Then the duct narrows sharply\. The same air must squeeze through a smaller space, so it speeds up and arrives smooth and fast\.

Watch the streaks: slow and pale in the wide duct, quick and deep blue after the squeeze\.

### 5. A road that moves

On a real track the road rushes under the car\. Here a steel belt runs beneath the model at the same speed as the wind\. Switch the belt off and the air near the floor drags and slows, shown in orange\.

Without the moving road, the air under the car would behave wrongly, and so would the results\.

### 6. Grip or speed?

Wings push air up, so the air pushes the car down onto the road\. That downforce means grip in corners, but it also brings drag, which slows the car on straights\. Pick a set\-up and compare the arrows\.

Green arrow: downforce\. Red arrow: drag\. Twisty Monaco wants grip; fast Monza wants low drag\.

### 7. Tilt, turn and lower

Above the model, a slim pylon holds the car and weighs every push of the air\. The car can be lowered, tilted and turned, as if it were braking or cornering\. Press the button to try a corner\.

The whole road and car can turn together, up to about 10 degrees, to copy a car sliding through a bend\.

### 8. Back to the fan, on the clock

After the car, a widening duct gently slows the air again, which saves fan power, and the loop starts over\. Tunnel time is rationed by the rules, so teams plan every run with care\.

At the full allowance a team gets about 80 hours of wind a year\. Teams lower in the championship get more time, top teams less\.