bobby_hamill
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My prayers go out to there family s
https://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2013/06/02/three-storm-chasers-killed.html
Bobby
https://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2013/06/02/three-storm-chasers-killed.html
Bobby
3 storm chasers killed
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DAllen
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Tim Samaras was my favorite chaser from Discover's "Storm Chasers" show. What a bummer.
Sooner Boomer
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From what I understand, the cars a lot of chasers use are just ordinary sedans - no roll cages or reinforcements. Another problem is the the roof instrumentation (so-called "mobile mesonets") can increase the damage in a roll-over. When I was working at the NSSL, we would just rent cars from the GSA for research projects. A group from Texas Tech was chasing a tornado near Olney, TX and camu on some downed power lines across the road. The power lines caught the instrument rack, which was mounted on a ski carrier, and ripped it off the roof, bending the roof up in four places where the ski rack attached. You can see by the picture below, the instrument rack will catch almost *anything* across the road.
The vans we used had an aluminum roll cage as well as electronics racks inside. This would provide *some* protection, but the roof instrument rack was the same design.
I only knew these guys by reputation/name. Storm chasing, especially tornado chasing is inherently dangerous (and deadly). These guys were not new to this. They had to have been aware of the danger, and must have accepted it as part of the job. They were serious researchers, too, not just out for kicks. They will be missed.
The vans we used had an aluminum roll cage as well as electronics racks inside. This would provide *some* protection, but the roof instrument rack was the same design.
I only knew these guys by reputation/name. Storm chasing, especially tornado chasing is inherently dangerous (and deadly). These guys were not new to this. They had to have been aware of the danger, and must have accepted it as part of the job. They were serious researchers, too, not just out for kicks. They will be missed.
Sooner Boomer
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That might be part of it. But I think another part is science as entertainment, ie. Mythbusters. And a third part is curiosity.
"It was only a matter of time..." - they're going to say that about hobby rocketry, too, one day.
Sooner Boomer
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https://twitter.com/StormCoker/status...802433/photo/1
I doubt anyone could have survived that. These guys had a reputation for safety. I'm not criticizing them in any way.
I'm paranoid about safety under these circumstances (but am I paranoid enough?). If I were to try this stuff again, I'd want to build a car/truck/SUV like a NASCAR or NHRA race car with full roll cage and harness. Winds in these storms can reach 150 mph easily. Look at the folks that survive crashes at that sort of speeds.
I doubt anyone could have survived that. These guys had a reputation for safety. I'm not criticizing them in any way.
I'm paranoid about safety under these circumstances (but am I paranoid enough?). If I were to try this stuff again, I'd want to build a car/truck/SUV like a NASCAR or NHRA race car with full roll cage and harness. Winds in these storms can reach 150 mph easily. Look at the folks that survive crashes at that sort of speeds.
When you are looking at a tornado what you are seeing is the debris cloud and within this you will find wind speeds that are ONLY 150 mph or so.
Within the funnel itself, hidden by the debris cloud wind speeds can hit 300mph+. Nothing survives that.
Then there is the growing evidence that within the funnels of massive tornado funnels there are a bunch of smaller funnels that are rotating counter to the direction of the main funnel, like satellite gears inside a planetary gear.
With the winds of the main funnel rotating at 200mph in one direction and the counter funnels spinning in the opposite direction at an even greater speed the forces at the interface between these two are mind-boggling.
Within the funnel itself, hidden by the debris cloud wind speeds can hit 300mph+. Nothing survives that.
Then there is the growing evidence that within the funnels of massive tornado funnels there are a bunch of smaller funnels that are rotating counter to the direction of the main funnel, like satellite gears inside a planetary gear.
With the winds of the main funnel rotating at 200mph in one direction and the counter funnels spinning in the opposite direction at an even greater speed the forces at the interface between these two are mind-boggling.
JPVegh
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Anyone who was a fan of Storm Chasers knows that these guys were cautious as all get out. They were the last folks that I would have expected to get caught by surprise. I think this really illustrates the kind of unusuall conditions that were at play on that fateful day and that no matter how cautious you are storm chasing is incredibly dangerous. As crazy as these professional chasers seem to us, we all owe them a debt of thanks for the data that they have gleaned over the years of studying these violent storms up close.
Davidtmp
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saw on the Weather Channel site their truck also got thrown about 200 yds. Luckily those guys were ok. From what I hear, the twister turned on them and caught alot of people off guard. Never watch Storm Chasers, sad to hear something like this happening.
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