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Do not try any of the experiments you are about to see at home.

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You heard him. Don't do it.

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On this whirlwind episode of Mythbusters, it's a tornado special.

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As Adam and Jamie hitch a ride with the storm chasers.

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Nice ride.

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First, this awesome foursome brews up a jumbo storm.

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To find out if the chasers chariot

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250 miles an hour, fire it up.

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can really stand firm in a force five tornado.

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I think I'm just going to take my vehicle now and go home.

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Then the Mythbusters get a second wind and turn to invention.

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That right there is a result.

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Can you really build a personal tornado protector?

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Firing it Adam.

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Or will it be all hot air?

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That's one of the games by the crowd.

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Who are the Mythbusters?

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Adam Savage.

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How much damage could I sustain from this?

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And Jamie Heidemann.

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Bye bye.

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Between them more than 30 years of special effects experience.

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Joining them, Carrie Byron.

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Crunchy metal.

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It's awesome.

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Tori Belleggi.

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Is this thing going to burn?

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Oh yeah it is.

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And Brent Imahara.

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I'm free.

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They'll just tell the myths.

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They put them to the test.

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Get ready because it's time to do the twister.

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You know I sense more than just hot air coming out of this episode.

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And you would be right.

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We've got a whole hour coming up solely about the power of tornadoes.

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And to do this episode we're bringing in two amazing experts,

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Sean Casey and Reed Timmer, a.k.a. the storm chasers to help us.

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You mean those guys that have those cars?

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They've specially reinforced them.

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They drive them right into the middle of tornadoes.

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Exactly.

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Take a look now.

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These clouds as they are forming in the distance.

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When a tornado is forecast.

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Can you swing around and get that please?

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The same response is to either leave town.

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Or at least duck into a ditch.

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Oh my god.

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But storm chasers Reed Timmer.

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And Sean Casey.

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Here it comes right at us.

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Are anything but same.

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Holy s***.

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Instead these maverick meteorologists lay their lives on the line for storm science.

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All the while they're supposedly fully protected by their suit up SUVs.

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Or are they?

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What's the plan?

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Well the storm chasers want us to test their tornado proof vehicles under tornado like conditions.

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Don't they do that all the time?

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They drive near tornadoes all the time.

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It's true but this season specifically they're expecting to encounter higher winds than they've ever found before.

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And they want us to help them determine just how tornado proof their vehicles really are.

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Can we break them?

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No one has yet told me that we can't.

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Well if first impressions are anything to go by this one looks kind of unbreakable.

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This is a tornado intercept vehicle or TIB for short.

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Specifically this is the TIB too.

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It's built on a modified truck chassis and it has 10,000 pounds of composite armor.

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Its 2 1⁄4 inch thick skin is composed of layers of aluminum, Kevlar aluminum, steel, rubber, polycarbonate, rubber and aluminum.

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Its windows are made of about an inch of glass and polycarbonate.

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In addition to its regular armor it's also got four hydraulic panels which can be lowered all the way to the ground to prevent high speed winds from getting underneath the vehicle and creating lift.

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It has a couple of 40 inch long spikes that anchor it to the ground.

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And it all adds up to the state of the art in tornado preparedness and research.

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And to top all that today it comes complete with two experts, Par Exelons.

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The TIB2's owner, Sean Casey.

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And the dominators, Reed Timmer.

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But believe it or not the storm chases are worried that both their cars tank like traits aren't enough.

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Nice ride, what can we do for ya?

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Well tornado season is coming up really soon and it's an El Nino year so we expect some of the strongest tornadoes on record.

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Where do we come in?

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Well this vehicle has withstood winds up to 145 miles per hour but we'd like to know what the outer limits are.

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So can you guys make us a tornado to test both of our vehicles?

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Sure.

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Absolutely.

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Well the Mythbusters sure know how to brew up a storm.

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After all they've built up perilous P-shooter.

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It's pretty serious.

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They've survived a round of man versus fan.

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I'm okay but my suit's starting to come apart.

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And they joked around with Hollywood Jets.

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That's a hot car.

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Holy s***.

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But to best simulate a full on twister when it's not storm chasing season, there's only one place to go.

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I can't believe they let us back after tearing up their runway.

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Where are the Mythbusters? You can't expect us to show up without something getting destroyed.

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Kalita Air 747.

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In deepest snowy Michigan.

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Is the perfect tool to test if the storm chaser chariots are really tornado proof.

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And here's how.

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When it comes to making tornadoes there's really not a whole lot out there that has enough power to do the job.

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This is our tornado.

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Oh it may look like a 747 to you but to us it's the perfect experimental platform.

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All we gotta do is push on this lever.

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And this engine spins up putting out 45,150 pounds of thrust.

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And out comes the tornado.

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Simple really.

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And what's more it comes with the storm chaser's seal of approval.

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There are three parts of the winds inside the tornado.

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The rotational.

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Those intense up draft.

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And just the pure raw wind speed.

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And for our vehicles it's that raw wind speed that we're most interested in.

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And that's why a 747 engine is the perfect tornado simulator.

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The 747 with its massive thrust is the perfect storm for this experiment.

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It'll unleash its tornado like power directly onto the storm chaser's chariots.

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To see if they can hold firm or flip out.

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But the mythbusters aren't going to unleash the beast on the chaser's vehicles just yet.

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I'm standing 175 feet from the engine of this airplane.

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Which right here will give us 160 miles per hour of tornado force winds.

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Instead they're starting with a regular cut to see how that can weather the weather.

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So right about here it's going to be going 160 miles an hour when they fire that jet up.

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Can you put that in context what that means?

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Yeah that's about a mid-range EF-3 tornado for us.

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And that's the enhanced Fujita scale.

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And that's a strong tornado and it would cause serious damage to a house.

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Likely lifting the roof off.

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Let's see what it does to the car.

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And with the team relocated to the runway.

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It's all systems go.

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This is what we call a control or a lack thereof.

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Alright let's fire up those engines.

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Okay turn to number three.

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The pilot flips the switch marked unleash held.

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And a couple of seconds later that's exactly what happens.

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The car is quite literally a pushover.

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And that's got Sean a little torn.

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Okay Sean.

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I think I'm just going to take my vehicle now and go home.

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Actually Sean, sorry buddy.

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But it's too late to back out now.

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Our fake tornado blew the car about 50 feet and it blew the hood off the car.

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Which is now about a quarter mile away from where it started.

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Now if you'd been in that car you would have survived.

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But the brown pants factor sky high.

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Alright so 160 miles an hour.

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Blew that car's hood right off and moved it 50 feet.

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You guys ready to put the TIF 2 in the dominant of the test?

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Definitely.

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Yeah let's do it.

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Alright let's do it.

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Undeterred by test one it's full steam ahead.

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Alright Sean bring in the TIF 2.

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Watching the TIF 2 come towards here.

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I feel like I'm living out my fantasy of being in a post-apocalyptic thriller film.

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But the TIF 2 is just part of the Stormchaser arsenal.

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Beautiful.

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Reed's weapon of choice is the Dominator.

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So this is the Dominator. Tell me about it.

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It has bomb proof coating, a top 16 gauge steel, polycarbonate windows, and hydraulics that allow the vehicle to drop to the ground so no wind can get underneath.

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So what's the top wind speed it's been in?

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We measured 155.2 miles per hour in a tornado in Wyoming last year.

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Well we're going to do it at 160. What do you think?

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I think it can definitely handle it.

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Both Reed and Sean are confident there'll be no carnage.

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And when their awesome autos initiate their storm proof features, you can see why.

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One plane, two engines, and two tornado proof cars being exposed to 160 miles per hour of tornado force winds.

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Let's see how they're going to do.

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Okay well let's do it.

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Alright, fire up those engines.

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Come on baby.

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Oh it's sticking there.

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Oh there, here we go.

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Okay baby, hold him there.

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Speedbrake!

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Step up for lift!

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Remember they've chosen 160 miles per hour because it's faster than the fastest wind speed either car has ever endured.

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At first it seems like it's plane sailing, but then...

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Oh my god! My god!

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The Tiv's door gets ripped open, but luckily for Sean nothing else moves a micron.

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It's been a while, right? Thank you, that was awesome.

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We made it.

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So it's job done. Other than a flawed door, the vehicles held firm.

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I think the test went very well, except for one thing, I forgot to lock the driver's side door.

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So something to definitely remember in the future.

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The dominator handled the 160 mile power wind like a champ, and that's the strongest one we've ever experienced with this vehicle.

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It was totally fine, didn't even budge.

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But remember, you're watching MythBusters, and a fat lady's not even close.

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Well they survived 160.

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Yeah they did, but that's not all we're going to give them, are we?

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No.

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Let's ramp it up.

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Coming right up, the storm chasers feel the force of a Force 5 tornado.

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Oh my god!

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With tornado season approaching, the storm chasers have asked the MythBusters to find out if their souped up SUVs are really tornado proof.

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Fire up those engines!

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And because they survived a snowy test one, it's time to ramp things up.

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These vehicles were purpose built to be able to withstand tornadoes, but so far they've only seen about half what one can put out.

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This time we're going to dial it all the way up.

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250 mile an hour winds, which is the equivalent of an EF5 tornado, the highest rating there is.

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That kind of wind will strip the house clean off right down to its foundation, and we're going to see what it does to this car.

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It's such a fearsome wind speed that the guys are doing a trial run with a regular car first.

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What's going to happen? Well this car is going to spin and over end.

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What's going to happen is the last thing that's ever going to happen in this car. It's going to blow away down the field.

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Alright let's do it.

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Okay, regular car, 250 miles an hour.

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Fire it up!

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From zero to hero, the jet soon reaches full throttle, whereupon the car tumbles like a toy.

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That was great!

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It's a case of now you see it, now you don't.

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Since just two seconds after takeoff, the car is 250 feet away.

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Oh, it took that car right up and took it quite a ways.

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It did, you think your car is a fair little better?

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Definitely.

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You ready to put it in the position?

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Certainly.

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Let's do it.

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But as their cars are secured in the full on firing line, the storm chasers mojo goes AWOL.

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250 miles power is insanely fast. I'm hoping the dominator will be okay because this is my baby.

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Yeah, the final test where this vehicle encounters 250 miles power winds, this has never happened to this vehicle before.

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And of course something you've spent your life working on, that being damaged in front of you and in front of everybody, it's horrifying.

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It's the moment of truth. You ready?

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As I'll ever be.

224
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Alright, let's fire it up!

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John, did you lock the door this time?

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Check.

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Once again, the source of the force is fired up and a moment later, a 250 mile per hour wind storms through.

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At first, the vehicles hold firm.

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The tiff with its anchor points barely moves, but then suddenly the dominator starts to lose its footing.

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Oh, it was done!

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It slides in the force five.

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Oh my God!

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But thanks to its lowered chassis, the wind can't get underneath it to lift it up or topple it over. It too survives.

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Thank you for not destroying my vehicle.

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It's okay!

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Beautiful!

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Good job.

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Well, that's great, even though it went sideways, it stayed firmly on the ground and never got under it.

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Yeah, I think there was always some downward force of that, which is good. That was a great test.

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Sure was. The high speed shows the strain both vehicles were under, and although one did move, this 250 mile per hour test was clearly survivable.

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And that's what counts.

242
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The tiff pretty much sat there like a rock. It didn't slide, it didn't vibrate, it didn't budge an inch.

243
00:16:28,000 --> 00:16:36,000
The dominator on the other hand started to move around from the very get-go, and eventually it came broadside to the wind and really started to pick up speed.

244
00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:39,000
But it never lost its balance, it never lost its stance.

245
00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:44,000
The bottom line is, with both of these vehicles and that kind of wind, you would have been safe.

246
00:16:44,000 --> 00:16:46,000
Thank God it's okay!

247
00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:55,000
Despite its wild slide, Reeds once over reveals the dominator only suffered a bent license plate.

248
00:16:56,000 --> 00:17:01,000
But it's the tiff that really testifies to the test's power.

249
00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:03,000
Oh my gosh, look at that!

250
00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:09,000
Yeah, they're bowing. The hydraulic piston, that anchor, goes in the ground, it's bent.

251
00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:16,000
The force of that wind actually bent, something that was rated to 9,500 pounds. Wow.

252
00:17:17,000 --> 00:17:23,000
In the fury of the Force V, the tiff's anchor points bent under pressure.

253
00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:26,000
But even so, the occupants would have survived.

254
00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:30,000
And that means it's mission accomplished for the Mythbusters.

255
00:17:30,000 --> 00:17:35,000
The Storm Chaser Chariots are indeed tornado-proof.

256
00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:42,000
Later, Jamie puts his life on the line for tornado protection.

257
00:17:43,000 --> 00:17:45,000
That's what a man looks like.

258
00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:58,000
The Storm Chaser vehicles survived a 747's most powerful tornado.

259
00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:01,000
Thank you for not destroying my vehicle.

260
00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:07,000
And that means that both cars can get the Mythbusters seal of approval.

261
00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:11,000
But Adam and Jamie are the gift that keeps on giving.

262
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:18,000
Well gentlemen, I officially pronounce your vehicles both Mythbusters tested to 250 miles per hour.

263
00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:19,000
Nice.

264
00:18:19,000 --> 00:18:24,000
Well, we know that these cars are safe in a tornado, but what if you're not in the car?

265
00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:25,000
Well, you're out of luck.

266
00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:26,000
Big problems.

267
00:18:26,000 --> 00:18:30,000
You know, I think we may be able to come up with a solution for you on that front.

268
00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:34,000
That'd be quite a challenge. Give us a few days and we'll see what we can come up with.

269
00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:40,000
When a tornado hits, being in a Mythbusters-approved armored vehicle is one thing.

270
00:18:40,000 --> 00:18:46,000
But if you're outside with nowhere to run or hide, then surely you're toast.

271
00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:52,000
Well, not if the Mythbusters can somehow build a personal tornado protection device.

272
00:18:52,000 --> 00:18:55,000
If Adam and Jamie want to build us something, this is what it's got to do.

273
00:18:55,000 --> 00:19:01,000
It has to be portable, it has to protect us from flying debris, and have winds of at least EF3 intensity,

274
00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:03,000
which is stronger than 135 miles per hour.

275
00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:10,000
Well, back at M5, it's the calm before the storm, as the guys nut out the problem.

276
00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:11,000
Starting with Adam.

277
00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:12,000
All right, let me walk you through this.

278
00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:17,000
As far as I'm thinking it through, I think this personal protection device has to do three things.

279
00:19:17,000 --> 00:19:21,000
It has to keep you from blowing away, because that would hurt and suck.

280
00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:25,000
It has to protect you from flying debris, because that would hurt and suck.

281
00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:29,000
And it has to adapt very quickly to changing wind directions.

282
00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:33,000
One of the most, I think, nefarious things that happens in a tornado.

283
00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:34,000
And this is my solution.

284
00:19:34,000 --> 00:19:37,000
It's basically some kind of armored bowl.

285
00:19:37,000 --> 00:19:43,000
I'm thinking that shape is ideal for allowing the wind to slip over it, a low coefficient of drag on the ground.

286
00:19:43,000 --> 00:19:44,000
But that's not enough.

287
00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:50,000
I'm also thinking a wing shape on top, pushing the person and his personal protection device into the ground,

288
00:19:50,000 --> 00:19:52,000
keeping him where he is.

289
00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:53,000
That's the theory at least.

290
00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:55,000
It's time to prototype.

291
00:19:56,000 --> 00:19:58,000
Adam's got two builds to contend with.

292
00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:00,000
First his prototype.

293
00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:05,000
And then a wind tunnel, which courtesy of four leaf blowers,

294
00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:10,000
should provide a decent draft to run the tests in.

295
00:20:11,000 --> 00:20:17,000
And thanks to the wonders of editing, both are ready just about now.

296
00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:20,000
So I put together a whole collection of funnels, cones and bowls,

297
00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:22,000
both with and without downforce wings.

298
00:20:22,000 --> 00:20:26,000
And I'm going to place each one of these in my simulated tornado's path

299
00:20:26,000 --> 00:20:29,000
and see which one locks itself best to the ground.

300
00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:32,000
That's the plan.

301
00:20:32,000 --> 00:20:37,000
But it's not a good start as none of the metal balls is what you'd call stable.

302
00:20:41,000 --> 00:20:47,000
The addition of a downforce wing may be good in theory, but it's not so good in practice.

303
00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:56,000
A final pit stop sees Adam minimize the surface area exposed to the wind.

304
00:20:56,000 --> 00:20:59,000
And that gives cause for some hope.

305
00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:03,000
Until that one too bites the dust.

306
00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:13,000
Well little dude, I've tried every combination of bowl and cone and wing that I can imagine.

307
00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:17,000
And as far as I can see, everyone I'm using makes such a high profile.

308
00:21:17,000 --> 00:21:20,000
They all just blow away in the wind even worse than nothing.

309
00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,000
I think we got to check this one.

310
00:21:22,000 --> 00:21:25,000
If you agree with me, don't do anything.

311
00:21:27,000 --> 00:21:28,000
I think he agrees with me.

312
00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:34,000
So our question is, how are you going to keep yourself from getting blown away in a strong wind?

313
00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:38,000
Obviously if you're standing upright, it's easy to knock you over.

314
00:21:38,000 --> 00:21:43,000
You could start lying prone and in this way you would present less surface area to the wind.

315
00:21:43,000 --> 00:21:44,000
That's a good thing.

316
00:21:44,000 --> 00:21:47,000
But what if the ground is smooth and hard?

317
00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:52,000
You don't really have any way of digging into the ground or putting a stake on it.

318
00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:58,000
And that starts me thinking that maybe we can use the wind itself to give you traction.

319
00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:02,000
Playing his cards close to his chest.

320
00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:08,000
Jamie runs a series of traction tests that don't mean much to anyone but him.

321
00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:12,000
That right there was a result.

322
00:22:12,000 --> 00:22:17,000
But judging by the giggling, it seems to be going well.

323
00:22:17,000 --> 00:22:19,000
Kind of like a wing shape.

324
00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:27,000
After a whole afternoon of dialing in the testing, Jamie's finally ready to reveal all.

325
00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:32,000
After a lot of fussing around, this is what I've come up with.

326
00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:35,000
This thing is made of several segments.

327
00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:41,000
It has a wind vane on the back and it has a pivot point and spike that grabs on the ground.

328
00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:44,000
Now how this works is this.

329
00:22:44,000 --> 00:22:53,000
As the wind comes over it, this wedge shape design allows the wind to press this spike into the ground and gives us traction.

330
00:22:53,000 --> 00:23:00,000
It also allows that spike to serve as a pivot point that he can shift with thanks to this wind vane.

331
00:23:00,000 --> 00:23:04,000
Also because of this wedge shape device, we have good debris deflection.

332
00:23:04,000 --> 00:23:11,000
And last but not least, this whole thing is extremely portable because it folds up like so.

333
00:23:11,000 --> 00:23:19,000
And attached to his back and he can walk around with it.

334
00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:21,000
The man's a miracle.

335
00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:28,000
Each of the three criteria addressed successfully in half an afternoon, at least in small scale.

336
00:23:29,000 --> 00:23:31,000
Well dude, I think we've got a winner there.

337
00:23:31,000 --> 00:23:33,000
Time to go full scale, huh?

338
00:23:33,000 --> 00:23:35,000
Absolutely.

339
00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:41,000
But as the storm chases will testify, full scale will be full off.

340
00:23:41,000 --> 00:23:42,000
Stay down.

341
00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:44,000
This can be intense you guys.

342
00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:45,000
Hang on.

343
00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:57,000
Twisters can be seriously dangerous.

344
00:23:57,000 --> 00:23:59,000
No, not those twisters.

345
00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:01,000
Those twisters.

346
00:24:01,000 --> 00:24:14,000
But to reduce that danger at the storm chaser's request, Jamie's prototyped a personal tornado protector at its time to go full scale.

347
00:24:14,000 --> 00:24:30,000
Where their shopping list includes polyethylene, check duct tape, check eighth inch aluminum, check some ballistic nylon, check and a Heinemann.

348
00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:31,000
Check.

349
00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:33,000
The plan is this.

350
00:24:33,000 --> 00:24:36,000
I'm going to be making what amounts to a low slung.

351
00:24:36,000 --> 00:24:37,000
This is my baby.

352
00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:41,000
Stream lined and very heavily armored to the tent.

353
00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:43,000
Oh yeah.

354
00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:54,000
Just like a tent that you would go backpacking with, this will fold up into a neat package and then when you're ready to use it, you unfold it.

355
00:24:54,000 --> 00:24:57,000
Now it's starting to look serious.

356
00:24:57,000 --> 00:24:59,000
It's got armored panels.

357
00:24:59,000 --> 00:25:01,000
It's got aluminum tent poles.

358
00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:03,000
Okay, everyone be quiet.

359
00:25:03,000 --> 00:25:05,000
It's Jamie's nap time now.

360
00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:07,000
It's got a heavy duty fabric.

361
00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:10,000
You crawl inside and you're safe.

362
00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:22,000
And with the addition of a spike base that will secure it into the ground, that is what says I'm not going anywhere in a few hundred miles an hour wind.

363
00:25:22,000 --> 00:25:23,000
That works.

364
00:25:23,000 --> 00:25:25,000
It's ready for some testing.

365
00:25:25,000 --> 00:25:26,000
It's all done.

366
00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:29,000
Let's pack it up and see how debris proof it actually is.

367
00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:30,000
Okay.

368
00:25:33,000 --> 00:25:36,000
And that's portability passed.

369
00:25:36,000 --> 00:25:38,000
Nice.

370
00:25:38,000 --> 00:25:39,000
There we go.

371
00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:41,000
I love it.

372
00:25:41,000 --> 00:25:45,000
Our tornado protection device needs to do three things here.

373
00:25:45,000 --> 00:25:47,000
It needs to keep you from blowing away.

374
00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:51,000
It needs to protect you from debris and it needs to be able to face the wind and change its direction.

375
00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:54,000
Today we're testing protection from debris.

376
00:25:54,000 --> 00:26:01,000
Our debris will be this soda can size piece of wood right here, which will be fired at our device by this, Jamie's little pop gun.

377
00:26:01,000 --> 00:26:02,000
That's right.

378
00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:13,000
Jamie's pop gun last popped out soda cans at 250 miles an hour with frightening results.

379
00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:14,000
You killed him.

380
00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:17,000
You tripped all the shock watch stickers in his chest.

381
00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:20,000
But this time it's got wood.

382
00:26:20,000 --> 00:26:24,000
Why are we firing these wood cylinders at our shield?

383
00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:32,000
Well, first off we're fresh out of cows and secondly, wood debris is the most likely thing that you're going to find in a tornado.

384
00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:35,000
And so that's what this is representing.

385
00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:44,000
And representing the person in the prototype is Buster, who for once may not need to be nervous.

386
00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:46,000
It's beautiful.

387
00:26:46,000 --> 00:26:47,000
He's ready to try them out?

388
00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:49,000
I think so.

389
00:26:49,000 --> 00:26:59,000
Well, as we prepare to fire some not insignificant debris at our tornado shield, I have to say I've got high hopes for its ability to withstand what we're going to throw at it.

390
00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:03,000
Now there's only one way to find out.

391
00:27:03,000 --> 00:27:05,000
Dr. Heidemann, are you ready?

392
00:27:05,000 --> 00:27:06,000
I'm ready.

393
00:27:06,000 --> 00:27:12,000
Okay, debris test in three, two, one.

394
00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:15,000
Oh, yeah.

395
00:27:15,000 --> 00:27:16,000
Did it hit it?

396
00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:17,000
Oh, yeah.

397
00:27:17,000 --> 00:27:22,000
It hit it and glanced off and it's about 600 feet that way.

398
00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:25,000
See some crow.

399
00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:37,000
The wood plug traveling at an F4 tornado's 200 miles per hour was a direct hit and the shield hardly shifted.

400
00:27:37,000 --> 00:27:39,000
That handled it really well.

401
00:27:39,000 --> 00:27:41,000
I didn't even see it move.

402
00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:49,000
So for test two, it's out with Buster and in with an altogether more valuable guinea pig.

403
00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:57,000
Based on our test, Adam should be okay, but just in case he's wearing a helmet and we also have EMT Sanjay.

404
00:27:57,000 --> 00:27:59,000
Do I think this will work?

405
00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:01,000
I better be pretty confident it'll work.

406
00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:03,000
I'm about to get inside of it.

407
00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:04,000
Am I a little scared?

408
00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:05,000
Yes, I am.

409
00:28:05,000 --> 00:28:07,000
Do I always answer my own questions?

410
00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:10,000
No, I do not.

411
00:28:10,000 --> 00:28:14,000
With Adam in the tent, it's time to vent.

412
00:28:14,000 --> 00:28:24,000
Okay, debris test firing at Adam in three, two, one.

413
00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:28,000
Once again, it's a direct hit that's deflected with ease.

414
00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:29,000
I feel great.

415
00:28:29,000 --> 00:28:30,000
That was nothing.

416
00:28:30,000 --> 00:28:32,000
It was like a little tap.

417
00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:33,000
Cool.

418
00:28:33,000 --> 00:28:35,000
Awesome.

419
00:28:35,000 --> 00:28:43,000
As we hoped, as we expected, and as we saw the tornado shield effectively protects its user from flying debris,

420
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:47,000
even debris flying at tornado-like speeds.

421
00:28:47,000 --> 00:28:51,000
Now all we need is a big tornado to test out the rest of it.

422
00:28:51,000 --> 00:28:55,000
It's pretty simple really, but sometimes the best ideas are.

423
00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:57,000
And the fact is, it worked.

424
00:28:57,000 --> 00:29:00,000
Now all we need to do is find a tornado.

425
00:29:00,000 --> 00:29:02,000
That shouldn't be that hard.

426
00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:05,000
If more is what you want, more is what we've got.

427
00:29:05,000 --> 00:29:09,000
Log on to discovery.com slash mythbusters.

428
00:29:20,000 --> 00:29:21,000
Tornado touching down.

429
00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:22,000
There it is, here it comes.

430
00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:29,000
As Reid Timmer and Sean Casey will tell, with winds reaching speeds in excess of 200 miles an hour,

431
00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:32,000
tornadoes are no laughing matter.

432
00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:33,000
Hold on.

433
00:29:33,000 --> 00:29:35,000
Seat belts.

434
00:29:35,000 --> 00:29:37,000
We're in the middle of it.

435
00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:41,000
Which is why the mythbusters are here to help.

436
00:29:41,000 --> 00:29:42,000
Let's recap.

437
00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:46,000
The storm chasers have these amazing vehicles to protect them from tornadoes,

438
00:29:46,000 --> 00:29:49,000
but nothing if they get caught outside the vehicles.

439
00:29:49,000 --> 00:29:55,000
Jamie and I have designed what we think is a viable tornado shield to protect a human outside of one of these vehicles,

440
00:29:55,000 --> 00:30:00,000
and we've come back to Kalida Air to fire up their 747 and test it out.

441
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:03,000
So you're ready to see the tornado shield?

442
00:30:03,000 --> 00:30:04,000
For sure.

443
00:30:04,000 --> 00:30:07,000
I'm transported with a backpack too, that's incredible.

444
00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:12,000
So you're going on a hike with your backpack, you see a tornado coming.

445
00:30:12,000 --> 00:30:15,000
You can't get out of the way so you deploy this.

446
00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:17,000
That's exactly right.

447
00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:19,000
And that's pretty much it.

448
00:30:19,000 --> 00:30:21,000
Well sure looks cool.

449
00:30:21,000 --> 00:30:26,000
So far, storm chasers Reed and Sean are impressed, and they should be,

450
00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:32,000
because the rig's 2 for 0, but now comes the ultimate test.

451
00:30:32,000 --> 00:30:35,000
Well, not quite now.

452
00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:38,000
Before we test our tornado shield, we need something to compare it to.

453
00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:42,000
That's called a control, and that control is called Adam Savage.

454
00:30:42,000 --> 00:30:47,000
I'm going to stand here directly in the windstream until I can't stand no more,

455
00:30:47,000 --> 00:30:51,000
and that will be the point at which we test the tornado shield.

456
00:30:51,000 --> 00:30:57,000
In other words, to be a viable system, Jamie in the shield has to withstand more wind

457
00:30:57,000 --> 00:30:59,000
than a person without a shield.

458
00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:01,000
I am ready!

459
00:31:01,000 --> 00:31:05,000
And to find that level, Adams staring down the barrel.

460
00:31:05,000 --> 00:31:08,000
How am I feeling?

461
00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:10,000
I have to admit I'm a little nervous.

462
00:31:10,000 --> 00:31:13,000
I know the safety system we have in place,

463
00:31:13,000 --> 00:31:18,000
but it's not every day you stand behind a freaking jet.

464
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:23,000
However, I can step out of the windstream of the jet's engine at any time,

465
00:31:23,000 --> 00:31:26,000
and they can cut it in a moment's notice, or a second's notice,

466
00:31:26,000 --> 00:31:29,000
so I guess there's nothing to do but proceed.

467
00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:36,000
Adam is clipped into a safety harness, and he has established some hand signals with Jamie.

468
00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:39,000
So I put one hand up, and that means increase the power.

469
00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:40,000
Exactly.

470
00:31:40,000 --> 00:31:43,000
Weaving around means getting me the hell out of here.

471
00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:44,000
Exactly.

472
00:31:44,000 --> 00:31:48,000
But even so, this is downright dangerous.

473
00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:51,000
It's time for Adam to go into the tornado.

474
00:31:51,000 --> 00:31:53,000
He's a brave man.

475
00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:56,000
Okay, fire that puppy up.

476
00:31:56,000 --> 00:32:01,000
For safety, the pilot starts the thrust at just 20%,

477
00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:05,000
which allows Adam to heave himself to his start point.

478
00:32:10,000 --> 00:32:13,000
Once there, the pilot wraps up the thrust.

479
00:32:13,000 --> 00:32:17,000
30% is 100 miles per hour for our fearless myth buster.

480
00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:25,000
40%, 110%, 50%, 120%, and he's still holding.

481
00:32:25,000 --> 00:32:32,000
But when the wind hits 130%, he gets a knockdown blow.

482
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:45,000
Like a feather in front of a fan, Adam stood no chance.

483
00:32:52,000 --> 00:32:53,000
How you doing?

484
00:32:53,000 --> 00:32:54,000
I'm good.

485
00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:57,000
That was awesome.

486
00:32:57,000 --> 00:32:59,000
There were a lot of things to worry about in that one.

487
00:32:59,000 --> 00:33:02,000
Chief among them, debris flying towards me,

488
00:33:02,000 --> 00:33:04,000
but I found being able to see where the wind was coming from,

489
00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:09,000
that I could actually dodge things that were heading towards me.

490
00:33:09,000 --> 00:33:11,000
That was crazy, crazy, crazy fun.

491
00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:12,000
I want to do it again.

492
00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:16,000
I really do, but I don't think we need me to do it again.

493
00:33:16,000 --> 00:33:19,000
Afraid not, Adam, because we've got the data.

494
00:33:19,000 --> 00:33:24,000
130 miles an hour, and you're flying without wings.

495
00:33:24,000 --> 00:33:29,000
Without any protection, Adam lost control at about 130 miles an hour.

496
00:33:29,000 --> 00:33:31,000
Now it's time to test the tornado shield.

497
00:33:31,000 --> 00:33:33,000
I'm feeling pretty good about it.

498
00:33:33,000 --> 00:33:35,000
I'm going for 180.

499
00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:39,000
I'm standing on the spot where I withstood winds of 130 miles per hour

500
00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:41,000
before I got blown away.

501
00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:44,000
The question is, will the tornado shield allow Jamie to stay here

502
00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:46,000
at a higher wind speed?

503
00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:50,000
We have the ability to make the wind speed here up to 180 miles per hour.

504
00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:52,000
Perfect place to test.

505
00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:56,000
And Jamie, as usual, seems somewhat nonchalant,

506
00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:59,000
despite the very real danger.

507
00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:03,000
The thing about going behind airplanes like this in prototypes,

508
00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:05,000
it's dangerous.

509
00:34:05,000 --> 00:34:07,000
We don't know what this is going to do.

510
00:34:07,000 --> 00:34:09,000
I believe I'm going to be all right.

511
00:34:09,000 --> 00:34:12,000
Just the very fact that I'm down on the ground low

512
00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:15,000
and I've got some protection, I think it'll be good.

513
00:34:15,000 --> 00:34:20,000
And remarkably, that's confidence that the storm chasers agree with.

514
00:34:20,000 --> 00:34:22,000
I'm really impressed by this.

515
00:34:22,000 --> 00:34:25,000
It's low to the ground, it's aerodynamic, no wind to go underneath.

516
00:34:25,000 --> 00:34:27,000
I give it a 100% chance of survival.

517
00:34:27,000 --> 00:34:32,000
I have two predictions as to how this test is going to go.

518
00:34:32,000 --> 00:34:36,000
I think absolutely that the tornado shield will allow Jamie to stay here

519
00:34:36,000 --> 00:34:38,000
at wind speeds higher than 130.

520
00:34:38,000 --> 00:34:42,000
I'm guessing maybe 150, actually, which is a pretty significant difference.

521
00:34:42,000 --> 00:34:45,000
I'm also predicting that Jamie takes the thing home to take Napson.

522
00:34:45,000 --> 00:34:47,000
Look at how comfortable he is in it.

523
00:34:47,000 --> 00:34:49,000
I'm in.

524
00:34:49,000 --> 00:34:53,000
Well, there's no time like the present to find out.

525
00:34:53,000 --> 00:34:57,000
All right, here's the first test of the human tornado shield.

526
00:34:57,000 --> 00:35:00,000
Go ahead and start the engines.

527
00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:02,000
I can handle the engines going up.

528
00:35:02,000 --> 00:35:03,000
We're all good.

529
00:35:03,000 --> 00:35:07,000
Like last time, the pilot ups the thrust in increments.

530
00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:09,000
The aircraft's away.

531
00:35:09,000 --> 00:35:11,000
Yeah, now he feels it.

532
00:35:11,000 --> 00:35:17,000
One design flaw of the shield is that Jamie cannot see out of it.

533
00:35:17,000 --> 00:35:23,000
You can only imagine how terrifying it must be as the pilot ups the ante.

534
00:35:23,000 --> 00:35:26,000
The tail end of this thing is one for the left.

535
00:35:26,000 --> 00:35:27,000
A little bit to the top.

536
00:35:27,000 --> 00:35:30,000
Feels OK.

537
00:35:30,000 --> 00:35:35,000
The shield holds up well as the wind creeps beyond 130.

538
00:35:35,000 --> 00:35:41,000
But suddenly, things take a turn for the worse.

539
00:35:41,000 --> 00:35:50,000
The suit tears away and Jamie is left vulnerably exposed.

540
00:35:50,000 --> 00:35:58,000
The pilot cuts the engine almost immediately, but like some sort of cyborg, Jamie survived intact.

541
00:35:58,000 --> 00:36:00,000
How you doing?

542
00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:02,000
I was fine.

543
00:36:02,000 --> 00:36:06,000
The tornado shield wasn't.

544
00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:11,000
It's just like all the...

545
00:36:11,000 --> 00:36:15,000
As the wind hit 135, the suit went AWOL.

546
00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:21,000
But the pilot cut the engines before any real harm was done.

547
00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:25,000
The weird thing is that you're in there in the dark.

548
00:36:25,000 --> 00:36:33,000
That right there is enough to freak you out.

549
00:36:33,000 --> 00:36:36,000
Once the wind started going, I was fine.

550
00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:40,000
The problem comes when things start to flap a lot.

551
00:36:40,000 --> 00:36:48,000
And at that point, it started to kind of move around to where it actually moved away from me.

552
00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:52,000
But once Jamie collects the shield from the other end of the airport,

553
00:36:52,000 --> 00:36:55,000
It's still all there. Looks like a pin fell out.

554
00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:58,000
It seems all is not lost.

555
00:36:58,000 --> 00:37:04,000
Moments ago behind me, what happened was the tornado shield's top separated from its bottom.

556
00:37:04,000 --> 00:37:09,000
Effectively delaminated, exposing the creamy center that is James Tyneman.

557
00:37:09,000 --> 00:37:11,000
Jamie is going to make some modifications.

558
00:37:11,000 --> 00:37:15,000
He's going to get right back on that horse and get in front of that jet.

559
00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:18,000
That's the spirit.

560
00:37:22,000 --> 00:37:25,000
I'm standing in the main deck of 747 cargo plane.

561
00:37:25,000 --> 00:37:30,000
Not for anything to do with the story, but just because it's so freaking cool.

562
00:37:30,000 --> 00:37:36,000
This is one of my favorite parts about this job is getting to look around the corners and see some of this stuff while we're working on other things.

563
00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:41,000
Alright, now back to your regular leaf schedule.

564
00:37:41,000 --> 00:37:51,000
Being outside during a tornado is a potentially lethal idea. Something Jamie's just confirmed.

565
00:37:51,000 --> 00:38:00,000
His tornado shield was looking promising until at just over 130 miles per hour it blew it.

566
00:38:03,000 --> 00:38:07,000
But Jamie's not giving up without a fight.

567
00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:15,000
This was the problem. These things right here, I made pivot so that the whole thing could fold up neatly.

568
00:38:15,000 --> 00:38:24,000
They're what actually holds the whole thing to the ground because they pivoted, they were allowed to move and they let go of the actual shield.

569
00:38:24,000 --> 00:38:32,000
So we're going to actually bolt them in place and bolt them to the shield. They won't let go this time and I think I'll stay in place.

570
00:38:32,000 --> 00:38:36,000
Alright, there it is. Good luck.

571
00:38:40,000 --> 00:38:43,000
There he goes, one of God's own prototypes.

572
00:38:43,000 --> 00:38:50,000
Once more, Jamie suits up directly behind the warming up engines of the 747.

573
00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:52,000
Are you alright?

574
00:38:52,000 --> 00:38:56,000
Okay, I'm good. I'm okay.

575
00:38:57,000 --> 00:39:05,000
Alright ladies and gentlemen, back by Pondler demand, it's Jamie Heineman in tornado shield 2, the back to the drug board tour. Jamie, take it away.

576
00:39:06,000 --> 00:39:15,000
Alright, start those engines. Jamie sounds really impatient in there. He's like, I'm still standing by as if we've forgotten about him.

577
00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:19,000
Okay, here it is.

578
00:39:26,000 --> 00:39:30,000
At 110 miles an hour, Jamie's finding it a breeze.

579
00:39:31,000 --> 00:39:37,000
So the wind speeds increased to 130.

580
00:39:37,000 --> 00:39:44,000
He's now experiencing 130.

581
00:39:54,000 --> 00:40:02,000
With the suit holding up, the pilot puts the pedal to the metal, increasing the speed to 180.

582
00:40:02,000 --> 00:40:12,000
Jamie and the suit are clinging on for dear life, but that seems to be working.

583
00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:38,000
I'm stuck in. I'm stuck in.

584
00:40:38,000 --> 00:40:48,000
Incredible, Jamie and his suit successfully survived an F4 tornado. It's absolutely mission accomplished.

585
00:40:48,000 --> 00:40:50,000
He did it.

586
00:40:53,000 --> 00:40:56,000
He was still 180 miles per hour.

587
00:40:56,000 --> 00:40:58,000
What was he saying? Is it pretty loud in there?

588
00:40:58,000 --> 00:41:04,000
I could barely hear him. He's like, oh, this is intense. Oh, I'm feeling it now.

589
00:41:04,000 --> 00:41:06,000
Let's go talk to him.

590
00:41:15,000 --> 00:41:18,000
That was 180 miles an hour.

591
00:41:18,000 --> 00:41:21,000
Yeah, baby. 180.

592
00:41:29,000 --> 00:41:39,000
That was just flat out terrifying. There's absolutely nothing you could do with that kind of power, except hold on and hope that the rig holds and by golly, it holds.

593
00:41:39,000 --> 00:41:46,000
It held. It held. I was waiting for the claw to let, what's going to let go, but nothing did.

594
00:41:46,000 --> 00:41:52,000
I was getting beaten by the surface of this thing. Wow. It's like being spanked.

595
00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:54,000
Okay.

596
00:41:54,000 --> 00:41:56,000
Nice work.

597
00:41:59,000 --> 00:42:09,000
The high speed shows just how intense that was with ice chunks hitting and a 180 mile an hour wind. The prototype rock.

598
00:42:09,000 --> 00:42:20,000
I gotta say, when we first started talking about the tornado shield, we went through a lot of design ideas, but I didn't think that any of them would have withstood what I saw here.

599
00:42:20,000 --> 00:42:33,000
Nothing prepared me for how devastating that wind was. And our tornado shield with only one modification held its ground in 180 mile per hour winds with nothing holding it down except from spikes, keeping it from sliding.

600
00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:38,000
That is amazing.

601
00:42:38,000 --> 00:42:41,000
Jamie did great. The first test he did, he failed.

602
00:42:41,000 --> 00:42:43,000
Miserable.

603
00:42:44,000 --> 00:42:49,000
But he did alterations and in the end he came through with flying colors.

604
00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:56,000
I don't know that everybody in the tornado belt is going to want to carry one of these things around, but we saw what happened to an unprotected person.

605
00:42:56,000 --> 00:43:05,000
We saw what happened to a car. And the simple fact is that if you had one of these and you got in it in a tornado, you'd be safe.

606
00:43:05,000 --> 00:43:09,000
Well, you guys wanted a tornado and we brought a tornado.

607
00:43:09,000 --> 00:43:12,000
And you've got a new piece of hardware for your kit.

608
00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:14,000
Man, I can't believe you did that.

609
00:43:14,000 --> 00:43:16,000
It's going to be a great tornado season.

610
00:43:19,000 --> 00:43:22,000
You