Wind tunnels are normally used in the research and development of high-tech weapons such as cruise missiles or fighter jets. However, there is one in Beijing's southwestern suburbs that was built to help Chinese competitors win at the ongoing 2022 Winter Olympics.

Designed and built by the China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, the facility－at a national winter sports training and research center in Fengtai district－is used by the General Administration of Sport to train winter athletes.

The tunnel has an internal space of 60 cubic meters and an 8-meter-long testing section. It can generate winds of up to 151 kilometers per hour, roughly the speed of a severe typhoon.

"We determined the speed out of consideration that the highest speed involved in the Winter Games is about 150 kph, which can only be reached during bobsled events," said Dong Guoqiang, a project manager at the academy in charge of the tunnel's construction and operations.

"There are a lot of sensitive sensors inside the tunnel that capture and analyze athletes' movements and gestures. The computers can then calculate the moves that will result in minimum drag."

The facility started receiving athletes in October 2020. Since then, it has mainly been used to assist them with their preparations for the Winter Olympics, Dong said, adding that hundreds of Chinese competitors have used it ahead of the event.

Dong's academy, the major research body for aerodynamics in the nation's space industry, has built and operated many wind tunnels for weapons' development and space programs.

According to researchers, wind tunnels are the most essential piece of hardware in aerodynamic research and experimentation, because they create and manipulate the airstream around an aircraft or rocket to verify and measure its aerodynamic performance.

In recent years, wind tunnels have become increasingly popular for sporting purposes in Western countries, including the United States and Canada, as coaches and athletes have found the infrastructure useful in the relentless quest to improve moves, training methods and equipment.