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In between bouts of Olympic games, the official torch that traditionally kicks off the opening ceremonies makes the long journey by a relay of runners to the host site. And you can bet that over the course of years, it has passed through some tricky environmental conditions. But is it ready to endure the unpredictability of British weather?
To find out, BMW – a main sponsor of the fast-approaching London Olympics – lent its wind tunnel facility to test the torch in a variety of conditions. Over the course of the grueling test, the torch was made to withstand temperatures ranging from 23 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit, winds generated at upwards of 50 mph, with snow packed into the front and under driving rain. But all the while the flame stayed lit.
The tests were carried out at the BMW Energy and Environmental Test Centre in Munich, a facility which boasts three wind tunnels and two climatic test rooms capable of simulating weather from -4F to 131F, replicating the Arctic Tundra and the Sahara Desert, generating wind speeds at up to 174 mph, and simulating altitudes approaching 14,000 feet above sea level.
To find out, BMW – a main sponsor of the fast-approaching London Olympics – lent its wind tunnel facility to test the torch in a variety of conditions. Over the course of the grueling test, the torch was made to withstand temperatures ranging from 23 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit, winds generated at upwards of 50 mph, with snow packed into the front and under driving rain. But all the while the flame stayed lit.
The tests were carried out at the BMW Energy and Environmental Test Centre in Munich, a facility which boasts three wind tunnels and two climatic test rooms capable of simulating weather from -4F to 131F, replicating the Arctic Tundra and the Sahara Desert, generating wind speeds at up to 174 mph, and simulating altitudes approaching 14,000 feet above sea level.
