Emerson Cavitation Tunnel

The Emerson Cavitation Tunnel is a research facility at Newcastle University with a vertical water circuit for testing propeller models up to 30 centimeters in diameter. A 300-kilowatt pump drives water velocities reaching 15.5 knots to enable precise analysis of cavitation effects on marine designs.

The facility was transported from Pelzerhaken, Germany after World War II in 1947 and began operations at Newcastle University in late 1950. It has served as a center for marine propulsion research since then.

The facility is named after Dr. Arnold Emerson, who led major improvements during the 1970s and 1980s. His contributions continue to shape the research conducted here today.

The facility is located at the Marine Campus in Blyth, Northumberland, having relocated there from Newcastle in 2016. Visitors should note this is a specialized research center that may require advance notice and permission to access.

The tunnel was originally built in Germany during wartime and moved to Britain after 1945 as part of post-war scientific cooperation. This German-British research heritage shows how scientific equipment traveled across borders during the Cold War era.

Inception: 1949

GPS coordinates: 54.97910,-1.61563

Latest update: December 13, 2025 12:40