PantheraTigris2
Deity
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2003
- Messages
- 2,006
So there I was, watching the news about Hurricane Frances with all it's high-speed winds, and for some reason (very bored I guess), this came to mind, and I wondered what people think would happen...
What would happen, IF - you were in an F-15 Eagle, flying twice the speed of sound (aka Mach 2), and you flew directly into the funnel cloud of a tornado. Let's say, it's an 'F3' (scale goes 1 through 5) - basically a typical, good, standard tornado.
Keep in mind, the F-15 is rated at Mach 2.5"+" (they still haven't revealed what it can really do)... and is a very sturdy aircraft... so we have some room to play with in terms of max speed/ winds the airframe can take.
Would the shock of such supersonic forces 'stun' the tornado? The F-15 would charge right through, and the tornado would be disrupted - and it would break up? Or would it resume once the totally unharmed Eagle went on it's way?
Or... would the F-15 have a sudden change of direction, say entering the funnel at a heading of 360 degrees, and exit at a heading of 45, or 90 degrees?
Or... perhaps it would change heading by 45 degrees as it hit on side of the funnel.. go through the 'eye' and then revert back to it's original heading after going through the 'other' side of the tornado?
Or... would the F-15 get completely sucked up into the funnel, and become a large piece of debris that would land in someone's yard?
Or... would the F-15 completely breakup immediately after entering the funnel, suffering sudden catastrophic stresses to the airframe?
Or... would the aircraft yaw suddenly upon hitting the strong winds, start to spin a little but still have enough speed and energy to pass though and recover on it's way?
Or... not quite recover upon exit... and the pilot bails out?
...
Personally, I think the plane would make it. I mean, mach 2 is REALLY fast, you know. I think it would cut through that tornado, and come out the other side. I think certain parts of the airframe might suffer some stress fractures, and the whole thing would need to be looked over by the maintenance crew... but it would fly back to base safely...
Discuss...
What would happen, IF - you were in an F-15 Eagle, flying twice the speed of sound (aka Mach 2), and you flew directly into the funnel cloud of a tornado. Let's say, it's an 'F3' (scale goes 1 through 5) - basically a typical, good, standard tornado.
Keep in mind, the F-15 is rated at Mach 2.5"+" (they still haven't revealed what it can really do)... and is a very sturdy aircraft... so we have some room to play with in terms of max speed/ winds the airframe can take.
Would the shock of such supersonic forces 'stun' the tornado? The F-15 would charge right through, and the tornado would be disrupted - and it would break up? Or would it resume once the totally unharmed Eagle went on it's way?
Or... would the F-15 have a sudden change of direction, say entering the funnel at a heading of 360 degrees, and exit at a heading of 45, or 90 degrees?
Or... perhaps it would change heading by 45 degrees as it hit on side of the funnel.. go through the 'eye' and then revert back to it's original heading after going through the 'other' side of the tornado?
Or... would the F-15 get completely sucked up into the funnel, and become a large piece of debris that would land in someone's yard?
Or... would the F-15 completely breakup immediately after entering the funnel, suffering sudden catastrophic stresses to the airframe?
Or... would the aircraft yaw suddenly upon hitting the strong winds, start to spin a little but still have enough speed and energy to pass though and recover on it's way?
Or... not quite recover upon exit... and the pilot bails out?
...
Personally, I think the plane would make it. I mean, mach 2 is REALLY fast, you know. I think it would cut through that tornado, and come out the other side. I think certain parts of the airframe might suffer some stress fractures, and the whole thing would need to be looked over by the maintenance crew... but it would fly back to base safely...
Discuss...
)
