3 ms·

Maybe it was this? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%A1rm%C3%A1n_vortex_street https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%A1rm%C3%A1n_vortex_street This has been cit

Maybe it was this? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%A1rm%C3%A1n_vortex_street https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C3%A1rm%C3%A1n_vortex_street This has been cited as a possible explanation for strange noises in the mountains at various locations and also as a possible cause of the infamous Dyatlov Pass incident.

btrettel 9y ago
I was getting ready to post this. The empirical equation for the frequency of the oscillation is on Wikipedia, which should allow easy testing of the hypothesis that a Karman vortex street is responsible if any particular object is thought responsible. As I recall, if the Reynolds number is too high, the oscillation will become broadband, so it won't sound as described. Of course, other fluid dynamical instabilities could be responsible, so discounting a Karman vortex street doesn't eliminate fluid instabilities in general. A more general fluid dynamical instability is the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelvin%E2%80%93Helmholtz_instability https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelvin%E2%80%93Helmholtz_insta...
blunte 9y ago
This is great! It's all outside my area of knowledge, but basic physics led me to the idea. At least now I know a name to describe my thought. Thanks!
JohnJamesRambo 9y ago
Why would a humming noise make people go crazy and leave their tents naked, cause a skull fracture and two chest fractures, remove one's eyes and tongue, etc.?
- davesque 9y ago
  Infrasound can cause weird psychological effects. Fractured bones can be caused by carelessly scrambling over uneven terrain which the campers may have done in terror. Vortex streets can also supposedly be composed of large vortices which are like tornadoes. Maybe the fractured bones could be explained by this as well. Missing eyes and tongues can be caused by wildlife. Edited to remove snark
  - JohnJamesRambo 9y ago
    Are there any other records of infrasound making people panic like this while camping in the mountains?
  - amputect 9y ago
    This article references one of my favorite anecdotes about infrasound and "hauntings": https://gizmodo.com/some-ghosts-may-be-sound-waves-just-below-human-heari-1737065693 https://gizmodo.com/some-ghosts-may-be-sound-waves-just-belo... It's early in, look for the part about Vic Tandy.

btrettel 9y ago

I was getting ready to post this. The empirical equation for the frequency of the oscillation is on Wikipedia, which should allow easy testing of the hypothesis that a Karman vortex street is responsible if any particular object is thought responsible. As I recall, if the Reynolds number is too high, the oscillation will become broadband, so it won't sound as described. Of course, other fluid dynamical instabilities could be responsible, so discounting a Karman vortex street doesn't eliminate fluid instabilities in general. A more general fluid dynamical instability is the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelvin%E2%80%93Helmholtz_instability https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelvin%E2%80%93Helmholtz_insta...

blunte 9y ago

This is great! It's all outside my area of knowledge, but basic physics led me to the idea. At least now I know a name to describe my thought. Thanks!

JohnJamesRambo 9y ago

Why would a humming noise make people go crazy and leave their tents naked, cause a skull fracture and two chest fractures, remove one's eyes and tongue, etc.?

davesque 9y ago
Infrasound can cause weird psychological effects. Fractured bones can be caused by carelessly scrambling over uneven terrain which the campers may have done in terror. Vortex streets can also supposedly be composed of large vortices which are like tornadoes. Maybe the fractured bones could be explained by this as well. Missing eyes and tongues can be caused by wildlife. Edited to remove snark
- JohnJamesRambo 9y ago
  Are there any other records of infrasound making people panic like this while camping in the mountains?
- amputect 9y ago
  This article references one of my favorite anecdotes about infrasound and "hauntings": https://gizmodo.com/some-ghosts-may-be-sound-waves-just-below-human-heari-1737065693 https://gizmodo.com/some-ghosts-may-be-sound-waves-just-belo... It's early in, look for the part about Vic Tandy.