If you jump off a bridge 50m above the water does the water need to be 50m deep?

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    Bridge Jump Water
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the implications of jumping from a height of 50 meters into water, specifically addressing how deep the water needs to be to avoid injury and the factors affecting the impact and depth of entry. Participants explore various aspects including physics, safety concerns, and anecdotal experiences related to high jumps into water.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants question how deep the water needs to be in relation to the height of the jump, suggesting that it is not a straightforward calculation.
  • There is a consensus that factors such as body position during entry, water resistance, and surface effects play significant roles in determining the impact and depth of entry.
  • Some participants argue that the risk of injury from the impact with the water is a more pressing concern than the depth of the water itself.
  • Several contributions mention anecdotal experiences and statistics regarding jumps from various heights, with some participants citing specific depths required for safety in competitive diving.
  • One participant introduces a hypothetical scenario about jumping to escape danger, discussing personal considerations regarding health and water quality.
  • There are discussions about the physics of impact, with some participants suggesting that the energy of impact is proportional to the square of the height jumped.
  • The influence of water conditions, such as surface tension and choppiness, on the impact experience is also raised.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a range of views, with no clear consensus on the exact relationship between jump height and required water depth. Multiple competing perspectives on safety, physics, and personal experiences remain present throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the complexity of calculating the effects of various factors such as body position, water resistance, and surface conditions, which are not fully resolved in the discussion.

  • #31
Jeff Reid said:
It's a visual thing...

Maybe I'm wrong then about the surface tension being broken by bubbles or choppy water or whatever.
 
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  • #32
tony873004 said:
Maybe I'm wrong then about the surface tension being broken by bubbles or choppy water or whatever.
I don't thing surface tension is a big factor. As another factor, it would take a tremendous amount of bubbles to reduce the effective density, as mentioned in another discussion regarding if a boat's water line would be affected by going over a bubbly section of water. I wonder if diving inside the water of a water fall would help (like the cases of barrels over Niagra Falls).
 
  • #33
Here's a link confirming what you said about spraying water:
http://juniorengineering.usu.edu/workshops/water/water.php
Another way to reduce surface tension is through physical means. If you have ever done a belly flop off the diving board you should be quite familiar with how water's surface tension effected you. Platform divers feel the same sting even when they land properly. To help reduce surface tension, a hose with a nozzle is positioned to spray water into the pool at the spot where the diver enters the water.
 
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  • #34
Jeff Reid said:
... as mentioned in another discussion regarding if a boat's water line would be affected by going over a bubbly section of water. I wonder if diving inside the water of a water fall would help (like the cases of barrels over Niagra Falls).

I saw a Discovery Channel, or maybe it was Nova episode on why large ships sink, and one theory was giant bubbles that altered the water's buoyancy.

Re: Niagra Falls, I would imagine it would have to help. Is the surface even clearly defined at the bottom of a waterfall? There's got to be a reason the barrel riders choose Niagra, rather than a tall cliff into a lake.
 
  • #35
Bubbles of methane?
 
  • #36
methane?


you don't mean 'landfill' or 'ocean/river' bottom methane, do you?
 
  • #37
I heard (must have been on the Discovery Channel) a theory that ships in the Bermuda triangle were sunk by large outgassing of methane due to an underwater landslide. Maybe "ocean bottom" methane.
 
  • #39
Oct. 2007 Physics Today happens to have a related article (not about sinking ships, but gas storage) "Clathrate hydrates under pressure."
 
  • #40
Loren Booda said:
I heard (must have been on the Discovery Channel) a theory that ships in the Bermuda triangle were sunk by large outgassing of methane due to an underwater landslide. Maybe "ocean bottom" methane.

ahhhh, it's from all those bean-eating Atlanteans still living down there---
 
  • #41
If i drop a rock off this bridge approximately how long should it take to hit the water if it is 10-15m below?
 
  • #42
JimmyJockstrap said:
If i drop a rock off this bridge approximately how long should it take to hit the water if it is 10-15m below?

you got to do your physics. do you know what the relevant equations are?

like

d = \frac{1}{2}a t^2
 

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