What happened to the black boxes?

[slicksilver]

How come no one is talking about this?.......Aren't these the most important source of vital information now?

Raj

 

[Static911]

weren't they disabled?

static911

 

[slicksilver]

Disabled??? I didn't know they could disable...........as of matter of fact I always thought that the black box is the only component in a plane which does not get affected however big the crash...........moreover aren't these fireproof??

Raj

 

[Static911]

i didn't watch tv xcept for 10 min at student center...but media never really talked about it

static911

 

[Czar]

The people in the ruble first, then find the boxes. Its like finding a needle in a heystack.

 

[Jarwa]

If the steel structure holding up the WTC could't survive the intense heat, then how could the "black boxes" ?? just curious

 

[spanky]

the terrorist disabled the "thing" that allows radars to track the plane. its the second to last paragraph. nothing about the black box tho. seems these things are pretty tough, they've made it through every other plane crash i've heard of.

 

[jcovercash]

The pitsburg pane did not catch on fire, becuase the piolet dumpe dthe fuel. It will be found from there.

 

[Static911]

gonna definately ask my friend who works in FAA how to disable one? difficult? preplanned? ez?

static911

 

[RossGr]

You do recall that the planes crashed into a 110 floor building which then collapased. I would guess that the black boxes are sandwiched some where in the middle of tons of rubble, along with 10k -20k bodies ...now why don't they just pick them up! Gee... I wonder.

Think man!

 

[Ladies Man]

they do send out signals so they can be found... thats how they find them in the ocean

and its very possible that they made it through the accident... almost impossible to break those things

 

[spanky]

anyone know what they are made ofthat makes them so hard to break? we should start making planes and buildings outta the same stuff.

 

[Degenerate]

<< anyone know what they are made ofthat makes them so hard to break? we should start making planes and buildings outta the same stuff. >>


I like this one...
i mean it melted the metal in the building.... couldn't it mellt the backbox??

 

[NakaNaka]

The blackbox apparently can withstand a lot, the reason the buildings fell was because the structure was ruined, it was not "melted" ... When they clear up all the ruble I'm sure they will find the black boxes, hopefully intact.

 

[TripleJ]

Buildings have 1.5, 2 or 3 etc hour fire ratings. Black boxes would most certainly be able to withstand many more hours than that.

I think the actual cause of the WTC collapsing was from the heat of the fire. As it last for 45 minutes or so it closely ties in with fire ratings. No doubt, the impact of the planes would have promoted the collapse.

 

[spanky]

<< I like this one...
i mean it melted the metal in the building.... couldn't it mellt the backbox?? >>




well...how many years ago was the WTC put up? these black boxes are fairly new technology right? so i am guessing tht they prolly developed or discovered some new "stuff" to make the black boxes with. either way, i am pretty impressed with how they hold up in plane crashes.

 

[ttn1]

I believe "black Boxes" are made of several layers of heat resistant and impact resistant materials. Only the very center of the box needs to survive.

As for the building melting, I would be willing to bet that portion of it did. The heat from a jet fuel fire of that magnitude would have easily melted steel. It would also have severely weakened the steel reinforced concrete. Once the structure in the impact area weakened enough for the floors above it to shift or fall a floor or two, there was no stopping those upper floors from taking down the rest of the building.

If the fire had been less intense, it might have been a different story. These people knew that a full load of fuel would greatly increase there chances of succeeding.

This is a freakish nightmare and I hope that the intelligence agencies of the world unite to find the people responsible. My prayers go out to the victims and their families.

ttn1

 

[Aelus]

Don't forget that skyscrapers are also moved by wind all the time, so if you have an explosion which undermines the buildings integrity, wind is still moving it all the time, so that's a considerable effect too.

Aelus

 

[Kcucumber]

Maybe the black box could be 12 inches thick of metal all around?
can't melt that piece of mettle in a year.

 

[slicksilver]

i'm pretty sure that the black boxes can resist any kind of heat......i remember seeing a documentary on discovery abt black boxes.

Raj

 

[Keego]

I highly doubt that the black boxes survived the towers. Maybe the Pentagon, definatley the PA one, but very highly NOT the WTC.

 

[FJ]

For those who missed the earlier post,

here's how black boxes work...

Enjoy,
F

 

[tcsenter]

<< The blackbox apparently can withstand a lot, the reason the buildings fell was because the structure was ruined, it was not "melted" ... >>

The intense heat from just about any building fire will MELT steel. After a really intense blaze, you can find slag and other evidence of molten metal.

The intense heat of the fire is the most likely cause of the collapse, causing the steel to reach such a temperature that it could no longer support the immense weight. Once the top floors start coming down like that, the whole structure is vulnerable. It just comes down like a house of cards under the immense pressures.

While the black box can withstand a lot, it is not indestructable. Extreme impact crashes involving a steep angle of impact relative to the ground often damage the black box enough so that little information can be obtained from it. With several thousand tons of rubble piling on top of whatever was left of the black box after impact, I would not be surprised if it is beyond salvage.

 

[rickn]

I've seen pictures of mangled, charred black boxes, and they still had usesable data on them.

The WTC collapsed because the upper floors were weakened and collapsed down the floor below, than that floor collapsed, and the weight just kept building, and then it is just a domino effect. Not all steel is created equal. Those flames from that explosion were probably 2000 degrees F.