3 miles down

[Kwacky]

There's a nice little graphic in the Washington Post showing how deep the missing MH370 airliner is if they're looking in the right place

http://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/page/w ... oblem/931/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

That's scary.

[Bratty]

That is proper deep.

[bb41]

wow, what a horrible thought that the plane is down there with all onboard still strapped in. What a gruesome task in bringing it to the surface .

Could they even do that ??

[Kwacky]

I don't think they've got anything which can operate at those depths capable of doing that.

The pressure alone will have squashed most things beyond recognition.

[C00kiemonster]

Great diagram. They may never find them IMO.

[Bratty]

Wouldn't it have broken into loads of pieces anyway ?

[Si.]

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=6c1_1193 ... comments=1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Perkles]

i would have scoffed all the sandwiches and cakes before i went down in that plane

[Kwacky]

I think it's fair to say they're searching for a pancake

[duke63]

Every morning we seem to have some **** from the Australian government harping on about how they are going to find this plane.

Is there a prize for finding it first or something?

[D6]

You get all the mobile phones still working.

[StMarks]

I don't think they've got anything which can operate at those depths capable of doing that.

The pressure alone will have squashed most things beyond recognition.

Actually, fwiw I don't believe that's entirely accurate.: The bodies will probably be largely unharmed Because we are made of around 60% water ourselves, and water is “virtually incompressible,” the body remains at the same pressure as the surrounding water, and is not crushed at depth. It is any gases inside your body, for example in the lungs, that would be effected. However as the lungs would soon be filled with water at the same pressure. We are not made of Styrofoam.

Backing up to the forums's original response to the reports of the missing plane.: If I had "kidnapped" a plane, I would then take a transmitting device operating on the same frequency as the black box, and drop it in the deepest section of ocean that the plane could conceivably have reached. I would then bring attention to that area with a scattering of degradable high visibility sheeting, that could be readily observed by satellite but would never be found.

That's how I would do it, but I am well aware that there are far more gifted minds who would be able to come up with far more elaborate & intriguing schemes to avoid detection.

[Kwacky]

Water can be compressed. Not as much as other materials but compression does take place.

The human body may have a large % of water and fluids in it but the structure holding the body together can only cope with so much. Without that framework in place there isn't going to be much left. This is 3 miles down. The pressure is about 8,000 psi.

Plus the fluids in our system contain a lot of gases which would be expelled.

[StMarks]

All true, of course mate. However I suspect that a lot of people believe that a dead body would be effected like that Styrofoam cup, whereas a dead body would probably be largely undamaged.

[Perkles]

Is that why your willy shrinks in the sea ?

[Godzilla]

Water can be compressed. Not as much as other materials but compression does take place.

The human body may have a large % of water and fluids in it but the structure holding the body together can only cope with so much. Without that framework in place there isn't going to be much left. This is 3 miles down. The pressure is about 8,000 psi.

Plus the fluids in our system contain a lot of gases which would be expelled.

Kwacky the gases wouldn't come out of the fluids due to the pressure, actually the reverse, they become more soluble as pressure increases a and then come out of solution as the pressure is released, that is what causes the bends if divers re-surface too quickly.

Apparently water has very low compressibility meaning that even in the deep oceans at 4000 m depth, where pressures are 4×107 Pa, there is only a 1.8% decrease in volume.

[duke63]

A cubic metre of water weighs 1030kg i think.

Therefore as 3 miles = approx 4.8km then 4.8km of water weighs 4,944,000kg or approx 5000 tonnes.

That's heavy.

[Kwacky]

I accept the diver analogy but that's with gases in an enclosed environment - the body of the diver. These gases in a body falling 3 miles in water would no longer be present in that body once it came to rest on the ocean floor.

[C00kiemonster]

I certainly think all the tissues of the bodies would be hideously compressed. When your diving to 100ft or so you have to tighten your belts etc so I dread to think what it's like at that depth

[bb41]

there could be one massive barrrp down there then?

I don't think I'd volunteer to look for it in case it blows especially with all that pressure behind it