Research facilitIES
Wind Engineering, Energy & Environment(WindEEE )
The Wind Engineering, Energy and Environment (WindEEE) Dome is the world’s first hexagonal wind tunnel. Its large scale structure (25 meters diameter for the inner dome and 40 meters diameter for the outer return dome) and 106 independently controlled fans will allow for wind simulations over extended areas and complex terrain. WindEEE uniquely allow for the manipulation of inflow and boundary conditions to reproduce, at large scales, the dynamics of real wind systems including tornado, downburst and hurricane.
Conceived of and founded by professor Alan G. Davenport, the first-of-its-kind Boundary Layer Wind Tunnel Laboratory (BLWTL) at Western is an experimental facility that includes two large, fully operational boundary layer wind tunnels. It is considered the birthplace of the modern practice of wind engineering and its researchers have made countless structures the world over safer and more economical – including many iconic and instantly recognized buildings and bridges – including the CN Tower, the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower and The Confederation Bridge. The facility has even tested NASA rockets.
The Shared Hierarchical Academic Research Computing Network (SharcNet) has installed ~40,000 processors and 30Pb of storage in a variety of equipment. SharcNet has established the protocols and software to make it readily accessible to the research community; deployed the dedicated network in conjunction with ORION that tie all the components together into a single coordinated resource to enable forefront research; and expanded the essential staff resources which support the systems and services.