Can an earthquake theoretically cause an airplane taking off/landing to crash?

Nov 7, 2000
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yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there
 

Heisenberg

Lifer
Dec 21, 2001
10,621
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If it was strong enough to put a big lateral load on the landing gear and snap it, yeah I guess.
 

laurenlex

Platinum Member
Feb 26, 2004
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Yes. Earthquake creates 40 foot gaping chasm in runway just as plane is hitting the runway. Death. Destruction. Made for TV movie.
 

arcenite

Lifer
Dec 9, 2001
10,660
7
81
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...
 

Kalvin00

Lifer
Jan 11, 2003
12,705
4
81
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck
 

Spike

Diamond Member
Aug 27, 2001
6,770
1
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Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

You would stop at the very center of the earth as gravity is equal in both directions there... at least thats my thought. Of course you would have to somehow get rid of all that molten rock and crap first

-spike
 

AccruedExpenditure

Diamond Member
May 12, 2001
6,960
7
81
Originally posted by: Kalvin00
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck

If the earth was hollow...
 

MrDudeMan

Lifer
Jan 15, 2001
15,069
94
91
Originally posted by: Kalvin00
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck

you would die before you got there due to rapid increase in air pressure
 

Heisenberg

Lifer
Dec 21, 2001
10,621
1
0
Originally posted by: Spike
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

You would stop at the very center of the earth as gravity is equal in both directions there... at least thats my thought. Of course you would have to somehow get rid of all that molten rock and crap first

-spike
Actually you would keep "falling" until you were an equal distance from the center as when you started (ignoring air resistance, friction, etc.). Then you would start "falling" back and basically oscillate.
 

arcenite

Lifer
Dec 9, 2001
10,660
7
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Originally posted by: Bigsm00th
Originally posted by: Kalvin00
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck

you would die before you got there due to rapid increase in air pressure

You're in an air pressure controlled suit, and, a very thick reinforced high temp steel tube was sleeved into the hole.
 

arcenite

Lifer
Dec 9, 2001
10,660
7
81
Originally posted by: Heisenberg
Originally posted by: Spike
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

You would stop at the very center of the earth as gravity is equal in both directions there... at least thats my thought. Of course you would have to somehow get rid of all that molten rock and crap first

-spike
Actually you would keep "falling" until you were an equal distance from the center as when you started (ignoring air resistance, friction, etc.). Then you would start "falling" back and basically oscillate.

That sounds cool.
 

crystal

Platinum Member
Nov 5, 1999
2,424
0
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Originally posted by: Bigsm00th
Originally posted by: Kalvin00
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck

you would die before you got there due to rapid increase in air pressure

I would think he becomes ashes part way in, but death by pressure is still good.

 

mordantmonkey

Diamond Member
Dec 23, 2004
3,075
5
0
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: Bigsm00th
Originally posted by: Kalvin00
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck

you would die before you got there due to rapid increase in air pressure

You're in an air pressure controlled suit, and, a very thick reinforced high temp steel tube was sleeved into the hole.

no. you wouldn't fall all that far because US--->china is not throught the center of the earth's mass...not even close. now you may roll for quite a ways though.
 
Nov 7, 2000
16,403
3
81
does gravity increase or decrease proportional from the mass's center?

either way, without wind resistance or other friction you would "fall" just about to the other side, then fall back the way you came
 

BigB10293

Senior member
Mar 23, 2005
358
0
0
Originally posted by: mordantmonkey

no. you wouldn't fall all that far because US--->china is not throught the center of the earth's mass...not even close. now you may roll for quite a ways though.

I wouldn't call it "not even close". But this map shows where the true through the center of the earth from you is.
 

mordantmonkey

Diamond Member
Dec 23, 2004
3,075
5
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Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
does gravity increase or decrease proportional from the mass's center?

either way, without wind resistance or other friction you would "fall" just about to the other side, then fall back the way you came

look at a globe and you will see what i mean. a line to china from US doesn't go through the center. you would get pulled toward the center mass (the side of the hole) before you got anywhere near the halfway mark.

 

So

Lifer
Jul 2, 2001
25,923
17
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Originally posted by: AccruedExpenditure
Originally posted by: Kalvin00
Originally posted by: arcenite
Originally posted by: HardcoreRobot
yes if a huge gash opens up in teh middle of the runway opening a hole to china and the plane falls in there

That makes me wonder... if you did have a hole from say the middle of the US to china... and you jumped through it, how far would you actually make it before you started falling the other way?

Damn... far out...

you would fall to the center and get stuck

If the earth was hollow...

ERROR. you would fall to the EXACT distance away from the earths core that you started at, but on the other side, then fall back, oscillating forever, if it was a vacuum. With air, you will go less and less far from the core each time until finally you settled in the middle.
 

GagHalfrunt

Lifer
Apr 19, 2001
25,284
1,997
126
Even without the "fall into a giant hole" responses, the answer would be yes. Major earthquakes cause violent upheavel of the ground. It it struck at the right time and the right way the power of the shaking could easily overstress the landing gear and snap it off.