Caption

Space Shuttle model being used in a wind tunnel test. The model (centre) is magnetically suspended in the transparent hexagonal test section of the MIT-NASA Langley 6-inch Magnetic Suspension Balance System (MSBS). This is a low-speed wind tunnel, hand crafted from mahogany, that was built by MIT (Massachussetts Institute of Technology) in the late 1960s. The Space Shuttle is a reusable spacecraft that ascends to orbit using rockets, and then glides back to the ground after re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere.