Experimental characterization of full-scale naturally ventilated atrium and validation of CFD simulations

•We conduct a full-scale experiment in a naturally ventilated atrium.•Inertial forces dominate a strong thermal plume, highlighting poor atrium design.•Three CFD turbulence models simulate experimental atrium.•All three models predict temperatures with RMSE less than 1.2̊C.•Airflow visualization provides qualitative comparison and PIV velocity predictions.