Mythbusters - squashed diver

[MartG]

Tonights episode has to be the goriest yet, when the hard-hat diver was squashed up into his helmet :-)

[ADEuk]

Is that the one where they sew meat to a skeleton and fill it with blood and animal guts?

[Nuclearsquash]

That's the one. It was pretty impressive the way the diving helmet imploded too. Got to say, that musy be a pretty nasty way to go, definitely not instantaneous.

[RadoVR6]

That diver made from meat was seriously disturbing.

Still had to watch it again on youtube though!

[durbster]

Had to look that up on You Tube but I'm still not quite sure what the myth is; is it the sudden release of pressure from the suit as if the line was cut?

[CastrolCraig.]

RadoVR6 said:

That diver made from meat was seriously disturbing.

Still had to watch it again on youtube though!

linky?

[chrisj_abz]

durbster said:

Had to look that up on You Tube but I'm still not quite sure what the myth is; is it the sudden release of pressure from the suit as if the line was cut?

yep, with the old suits it needs to be pressurised to counteract the water pressure, cut the supply and suddenly you have all that water pressing on your body with the results not being pleasant!

[RemaL]

watched last night as i had it on Sky +

really enjoyed it

[durbster]

In Broome, Australia, I was lucky enough to meet one of the original Japanese pearl divers and he had some really harrowing stories. The disturbingly large Japanese cemetary there is a pretty stark illustration of just how dangerous it was.

[sy534534]

CastrolCraig. said:

RadoVR6 said:

That diver made from meat was seriously disturbing.

Still had to watch it again on youtube though!

linky?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fdv78enZUAk
HD version, well worth a look! HTH

[Frankeh]

That would SUCK.
What happened to cause it though? No sound.

[MartG]

Frankeh said:

What happened to cause it though? No sound.

135psi water pressure outside the suit v 14psi air pressure inside the helmet

[the_lone_wolf]

I watched it when it was first aired in the states, had my doubts about it but high pressures can do some crazy things, reminds me of the video of the crab getting sucked through the slot in an underwater pipe that a grinder was drilling, couldn't have been thicker than the tip of the crab's leg...

Crab video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wv14vZx6jvU

[Frankeh]

MartG said:

Frankeh said:

What happened to cause it though? No sound.

135psi water pressure outside the suit v 14psi air pressure inside the helmet

Still can't get my head around this. Is it squeezing his body into the helmet?

the_lone_wolf said:

I watched it when it was first aired in the states, had my doubts about it but high pressures can do some crazy things, reminds me of the video of the crab getting sucked through the slot in an underwater pipe that a grinder was drilling, couldn't have been thicker than the tip of the crab's leg...

Crab video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wv14vZx6jvU

Baaaahahaha.

I feel bad for laughing but you could almost feel the crabs sense of "Wait, what the fk is hap-oirhdsohfohds".

[Hugo a Gogo]

where did i hear this story; deep sea diver in a heated suit, the suit is heated by warmed sea water, warm water comes in to the suit somewhere near the arse crack - somehow a (stinging) jellyfish gets sucked in, minced and squirted into his suit....

[MartG]

Frankeh said:

Still can't get my head around this. Is it squeezing his body into the helmet?

Yes - when the air hose gets cut, the pressure in the helmet drops back to sea level air pressure, so the water pressure outside the suit squeezes the diver up into the helmet

[the_lone_wolf]

Hmm, just did some rough numbers

Human body has ~2sqm surface area = 3100 square inches

With a pressure differential of 120psi (135-15) that gives the equivalent mass acting over the whole surface area of your body of ~372,000lb

Or in new money, ~170,000kg

No wonder it squeezed him into the helmet

[Martin_Hx]

That crab one is pretty mental aswell.

[mrmr96]

the_lone_wolf said:

Hmm, just did some rough numbers

Human body has ~2sqm surface area = 3100 square inches

With a pressure differential of 120psi (135-15) that gives the equivalent mass acting over the whole surface area of your body of ~372,000lb

Or in new money, ~170,000kg

No wonder it squeezed him into the helmet

Indeed. The theory says it works, but it's still one of those things you don't quite fully believe until you've seen it for real.

[Jasandjules]

MartG said:

Frankeh said:

Still can't get my head around this. Is it squeezing his body into the helmet?

Yes - when the air hose gets cut, the pressure in the helmet drops back to sea level air pressure, so the water pressure outside the suit squeezes the diver up into the helmet

It's got to be a pretty bad way to go.

Think I'll stick to plain old scuba..