MovieChat Forums > Atomic Twister (2019) Discussion > Tornadoes don't behave this way

Tornadoes don't behave this way

posted 17 years ago by WaldoMaui
5 replies | jump to latest

I'm tired of watching tornado movies which erroneously show high pressure forces blowing the windows of a house IN. In reality quite the opposite occurs. A tornado creates an extreme and sudden low pressure area around a house. This causes the house to literally explode since the air pressure inside the house remains relatively high. It's my understanding that if the occupants of the house open all the windows before the tornado approaches, the house is not likely to explode. Of course, the house may still be destroyed or damaged by the winds, projectiles and suction.

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] pvt1863 16 years ago

Windows also can be smashed by debris. When this happens, the glass would go into the house.

Line lm62 said, it is the wind and not the pressure differential that destroys houses. What often happens is the wind tears the roof off of the house. Once the roof is gone, the walls loose most of their lateral support, so they tend to fail and fall outwards. This is why it was long thought that houses underwent pressure explosions -- the resulting debris pattern looks like it was caused by an explosion, but the house simply fell apart.

[–] n2trm 16 years ago

The pressure difference between the inside of the house and the tornadoes low pressure is not enough to cause windows to blow outward. Homes have tons of places where the pressure will release and equalize on its own such as small gaps in door frames, attic vents, etc. In order for the tornadoes pressure difference to have any effects, it would have to be on top of the house and by then, any house would be destroyed anyway.

[–] elmuhfuh 16 years ago

im tired of reading posts in which people think they know something about how things work.

[–] NothingSadderLonelyQueen 16 years ago

Shut up! in reality, Tornadoes or Naides, as i call um, are evil ferrocious beings that want to kill you and steal your gold. Sometimes they want to slash you with glass first, so they smash the glass inwards, but sometimes they just want a quick kill and suck it out, as well as you.