Supersonic Jets Breaking Up Hurricanes: Possibilities

Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of using supersonic jets to disrupt hurricanes, specifically examining the feasibility and implications of such an approach. It touches on theoretical considerations, patent applications, and the qualifications of the individuals involved in proposing this idea.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express skepticism about the practicality of using fighter jets to break up hurricanes, likening it to "swatting an elephant with a flyswatter."
  • Others suggest that while the idea seems absurd, there may be merit in early intervention to disrupt hurricane formation.
  • A participant references a patent application by Arkady I. Leonov, noting his expertise in fluid flow and previous work on hurricanes, but also highlights the lack of peer-reviewed support for the claims made.
  • Concerns are raised about the absence of formal peer-reviewed references, leading to a call for caution in discussing the topic further.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express skepticism about the effectiveness of the proposed method, but there is no consensus on its potential viability, as some remain open to the idea of early intervention.

Contextual Notes

The discussion is limited by the lack of peer-reviewed literature supporting the claims made about using supersonic jets to influence hurricane behavior, and the reliance on non-peer-reviewed sources raises questions about the validity of the arguments presented.

lvlastermind
Messages
101
Reaction score
0
http://www.popsci.com/military-aviation-amp-space/article/2009-03/hurricane-busters

A Category 4 hurricane approaches New Orleans, yet “When the Saints Go Marching In” continues to spill out of clubs on Bourbon Street. No one’s worried, because two F4 Phantom fighter jets have just taken off from the nearby Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base to kill the storm before it hits land...
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Computer science news on Phys.org


On the face of it, it looks absurd. And frankly, that's what I am betting.

However, who knows. A hurricane dissipates one heck of a lot of energy, but so too does ordinary convection on a clear day. In principle I can't fault the idea that you might be able to break up the conditions of formation early on.

So if you want more background:
  • Here's a report of the patent application in New Scientist: Invention: Supersonic hurricane neutraliser, New Scientist website, written 1 Dec 2008 by Justin Mullins.
  • Here's the actual patent application itself.
  • The main author, Arkady I. Leonov, is a Professor of Polymer Engineering at the University of Akron, Ohio. The relevant aspect of his background is that he has legitimate expertise in fluid flow; albeit mostly applied in smaller scales. Here's his http://www2.uakron.edu/cpspe/dpe/web/leonov.php at the Uni.
  • He's written a couple of papers on hurricanes for arxiv; which is a repository of papers without formal peer review. There's lots of good stuff there, but inclusion is no assurance of quality. The paper looks sensible at first glance, and barely touches on methods for actually manipulating hurricanes. See Aerodynamic Models for Hurricanes IV. On the hurricane genesis and maturing, arXiv:0812.3180v1 Dec 2008.
 
Last edited by a moderator:


I agree, it certainly sounds absurd. It's swatting an elephant with a flyswatter.

But I also can't dismiss this one out of hand, especially the earlier the intervention.
 


Since we don't have any peer-reviewed references, and because this is not a claim of an unexplained phenomenon, I am locking the thread to prevent misguided discussions. If anyone has a journal reference for this, send me a pm and we can move the discusison to Earth Sciences. Until then, this falls into the category of an interesting but unsubstantiated claim.