1/30-scale model helps Corps test Folsom Dam's 'new dam'

The Sacramento District tested the future performance of the Folsom Dam auxiliary spillway control structure -- essentially a second dam -- using a 1/30 scale model at Utah State University in Logan, Utah, Dec. 5, 2012 In this video, watch as the volume of water flowing through the dam increases from about 40,000 cubic feet per second to 320,000 cfs -- the most water it is designed to release. A cubic foot of water is about the size of a basketball. The district uses a 3-D computer simulation to compare results and help ensure they're accurately replicating the conditions of the reservoir. In addition to testing the spillway design, the model could also be used help better understand the maintenance required for operating the spillway. Designed to work in cooperation with the existing Folsom Dam, the new control structure will contain six large tainter gates located 50 feet lower in elevation than the main dam's gates, allowing dam operators to release water earlier during major storm events to help reduce the likelihood of downstream flooding. More on the Folsom Dam auxiliary spillway project: http://www.spk.usace.army.mil/Mission...