Olympic Swimmers Shattering Records in ODU Engineering Graduate Tested Suit

Swimmers from around the world are setting world and Olympic records in Beijing this month and most are doing it wearing a swimsuit made of fabric tested at NASA.

Among the Olympic gold medalists wearing Speedo's LZR Racer are Americans Michael Phelps -- who has now won more Olympic gold medals than any athlete in the modern era -- and Natalie Coughlin.

Both had a hand in developing the skintight body suit.

So did aerospace engineer Steve Wilkinson  (Mechanical Engineering , BS, MS) from NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va.

Wilkinson, who says he's not much of a swimmer himself, is watching this summer's Olympics with enthusiasm.

"I'm paying very close attention to the swimmers' times," said Wilkinson. "I'm amazed that so many athletes are wearing a fabric I tested in a laboratory in Hampton, Virginia."

Researcher Wilkinson has tested dozens of swimsuit fabrics in NASA Langley's 7- by 11-Inch Low Speed Wind Tunnel.

"This is a fundamental research facility," said Wilkinson. "What we look at are concepts for reducing drag on otherwise smooth surfaces. This is more directed toward fundamental physics … the interactions between the flow AND THE SURFACE."

The fabric that made it through Wilkinson's wind tunnel analysis has already caused a big splash since the LZR Racer swimsuit was introduced in February. Even before the Olympics swimmers wearing the skin-tight body suit set 48 world records.