It's impossible to consider that we're in the eighth season of Mythbusters already. Hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman have somehow managed to make each episode of every season seem familiar yet still provide both entertainment and more than a little education. With new episodes starting just a week ago (October 6, 2010) on the Discovery Channel, the boys are back with more to keep us on our toes.
If you haven't heard of the Mythbusters before, the show takes one or more "myths" and then uses ingenuity, science, and showmanship to prove whether they are confirmed, busted, or remain unconfirmed. They've taken everything from the idea that a cup of soda tossed out the window of a car could break through the windshield of an oncoming car and kill the driver or can the propane tank for a BBQ grill get hot enough to launch through the roof like a rocket. Some of my personal favorites are the "special episodes" where they take something like duct tape and build a suspension bridge strong enough for someone to walk across... Yes, these guys are a little crazy - but every episode is fun and always manages to teach a little common sense and science at the same time.
An upcoming special episode airing this week is called "Storm Chasing Myths." Adam and Jamie managed to convince Reed Timmer and Sean Casey from Discovery's Storm Chasers series to let them test their two "tornado-proof" research vehicles - Reed's "Dominator" and Sean's "TIV2". Each has survived tornado wind speeds up to 155 mph and lived to tell the tale, but they wanted more. Could they survive an F4 or F5 tornado with speeds upwards of 250 mph?
You can bet that Adam and Jamie wouldn't turn down the opportunity to put these vehicles to the test. Using the four jet turbine engines of a 747 to simulate tornado-force winds, the duo was excited to see what would happen.
Article comments
1 - Ashlea
His name is Tory Belleci... not Tony. Tory is short for Salvatore.
2 - Fitz
@Ashlea - Thanks for the correction. Sorry for the misspelling!
3 - copper
loved this episode