Wind shear

Wind shear, sometimes referred to as windshear or wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizontal wind shear. Vertical wind shear is a change in wind speed or direction at different altitudes. Horizontal wind shear is a change in wind speed between fixed points on the ground at any given altitude.

Wind shear is a microscale meteorological phenomenon occurring over a very small distance, but it can be associated with mesoscale or synoptic scale weather features such as squall lines and cold fronts. It is commonly observed near microbursts and downbursts caused by thunderstorms, fronts, areas of locally higher low level winds referred to as low level jets, near mountains, radiation inversions that occur due to clear skies and calm winds, buildings, wind turbines, and sailboats. Wind shear has a significant effect during take-off and landing of aircraft due to its effects on control of the aircraft, and it has been a sole or contributing cause of many aircraft accidents.

Windshear (comics)

Windshear (Colin Ashworth Hume) is a fictional character, a superhero in the Marvel Comics universe.

Fictional character biography

Colin Ashworth Hume was born Toronto, Ontario, Canada; he moved with his family to Great Britain when he was five years old, and grew up in England as a Canadian expatriate. He found work as a special operative, using his mutant powers for the superhuman division of Roxxon Oil Corp's United Kingdom branch, where he was given a suit of armor.

When Hume was unable to defeat a machine-creature at Roxxon's Denver Energy Research station, Roxxon called in Madison Jeffries, at the time known as Box who was aided by Diamond Lil. Windshear, Box, and Diamond Lil encountered the "Muir Island X-Men", and recruited Forge to help battle the machine-creature; with Forge, Windshear discovered James MacDonald Hudson at the core of the machine-creature. Hume, upset over the truth of Roxxon's practices, quit Roxxon Oil and returned to Canada with the members of Alpha Flight, and he was soon accepted onto the team of adventurers as a probationary member.

WindShear

Coordinates: 35°24′03″N 80°42′09″W / 35.40084°N 80.70244°W / 35.40084; -80.70244 The Windshear Full Scale Rolling Road Wind Tunnel is an automotive wind tunnel in Concord, North Carolina.

In January 2008 Wind Shear, a division of US machine tool builder Haas Automation, completed construction on one of the most advanced automotive wind tunnels in the world. The full-scale tunnel is located adjacent to Concord Regional Airport in Concord, North Carolina. The commercial operation was designed for vehicles from race industries: stock car, Formula One, Indy car, drag racing, as well as production car industries.

Wind Shear's tunnel is a closed air circuit, temperature-controlled system built around a rolling road. The rolling road, akin to a giant treadmill, is 3 meters wide by 9 meters long (10' x 29') and accommodates full-size cars. Air and rolling road speeds are coordinated up to 180 MPH (290 km/h). Air temperature, critical to repeatable data collection, is maintained at a constant 75 °F (24 °C), plus or minus one degree. Air is moved through the massive 15,000 square foot (1500 square meter) air circuit at the maximum rate of 2.85 million cubic feet (80,700 cubic meters) per minute by a 5100 HP (3750 KW) motor and 29 carbon fiber blades 22 feet (6.7 m) in diameter.