credit: NASA Marshall Space Flight Center / Caption: click on
the image to see a larger version NASA says, "This schlieren
photo depicts a wind tunnel test demonstrating air flow over the
.331 percent model of the Ares V heavy cargo launch vehicle at
Mach 4.5. Schlieren imaging is a diagnostic method used to
visualize air flows with varying densities. It is widely used in
aeronautical engineering to photograph the flow of air around
objects. Marshall [Space Flight Center] engineers are testing
the stainless steel and aluminum model to collect aerodynamic
data that will help the Ares V team determine basic requirements
for guidance, navigation and control of the Ares V vehicle."