Storm Near Bunbury?
Some amazing pictures of a tornado have been doing the rounds. According to the info that accompanies them, these are "Photos of storm near Bunbury" (which is in Australia), although the text also notes that "you'd swear these
were taken in america's mid west / tornado belt..." This has started some discussion on alt.folklore.urban, as people try to locate exactly where these photos were taken. The scenery does look a lot like the midwest. |
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Posted By: Alex | Date: Fri May 20, 2005 | Permalink |
Total Comments: 80
Category: Photos/Videos, Places
Category: Photos/Videos, Places
Listed in chronological order. Newest comments at the end.
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We did have a devestating tornado the other day in Bunbury. Half the town was destroyed. We also had a whole heap of little ones go through Perth causing minor damage. Bunbury does have scenery like that but I don't read the paper often enough to know if photo's like that were published over here. If they were real, I'm sure they would have been published here.
I'll ask around.
Posted by Nettie in Perth, Western Australia on Fri May 20, 2005 at 08:03 AM
I'll ask around.
I've lived in the American midwest my whole life and our tornado pictures don't look like that. The formations just look strange...
Posted by J on Fri May 20, 2005 at 08:11 AM
well, there has been some really freaky weather in australia.
in brisbane they had a huge hail storm feet deep and raidars didnt sense it till half an hour before and ice was all over football fields and stuff.
and besides if you live there you would know
Posted by teryn in new zealand on Fri May 20, 2005 at 12:30 PM
in brisbane they had a huge hail storm feet deep and raidars didnt sense it till half an hour before and ice was all over football fields and stuff.
and besides if you live there you would know
Nettie and Smerk: there's no place like home, there's no place like home... and your little dog, too
Posted by Hairy Houdini on Fri May 20, 2005 at 12:40 PM
Scenery? The only 'scenery' is some flat land, a few trees and a road. Do you really think the USA's midwest is the only place on the planet that looks like that?!
Posted by Wendy in New Zealand on Fri May 20, 2005 at 02:09 PM
Correct me if I am wrong, but tornados in Australia rotate counter clockwise, just as water goes down the drain counter clockwise in the southern hemisphere.
Rotation in these photos isn't that easy to see, but in the third photo (flush right) and possibly the first (flush left) it's pretty clear the rotation is in fact counter clockwise.
Of course, they could have easily flipped the photo horizontally...
Posted by Brenner Thomas on Fri May 20, 2005 at 02:11 PM
Rotation in these photos isn't that easy to see, but in the third photo (flush right) and possibly the first (flush left) it's pretty clear the rotation is in fact counter clockwise.
Of course, they could have easily flipped the photo horizontally...
"...water goes down the drain counter clockwise in the southern hemisphere"
I'm afraid that's an urban legend.
Posted by Peter on Fri May 20, 2005 at 02:37 PM
I'm afraid that's an urban legend.
There may be a place called Bunbury, but Bunbury is also the name of the nonexistent person Ernest is always running off to visit in "The Importance of Being Ernest."
Posted by Big Gary in Dallas, Texas, USA on Fri May 20, 2005 at 04:03 PM
This shot makes it look like the truck in the middle-ground is driving on the right side (wrong for Australia) of the road. It's real hard to tell though and this picture doesn't help any since the cars are too far away to tell which side they're on. I saw a lot of Austrailia a few years ago and plenty that looked like the midwest US.
Posted by Reinstag on Fri May 20, 2005 at 04:06 PM
Dude, the whole water-swirl-latitude thing is not an urban legend... it goes more straight down near the equator, and swirls faster in the respective direction as you approach the further latitudes... Some toilets, however, have a directional swirl in the design, which counteracts the gravitational swirl... but if you use a large sink or tub, you can measure the increased swirl speed at further latitudes... don't make me prove it- i don't feel like it
Posted by Hairy Houdini on Fri May 20, 2005 at 04:14 PM
Cool pictures... explains why Smerk has been "in side" lately...
Posted by Mark-N-Isa in Midwest USA on Fri May 20, 2005 at 04:31 PM
well that street sign looks pretty australian to me...
Posted by Hew on Fri May 20, 2005 at 05:47 PM
The corealis effect works for large phenomenon like storms, but is insignificant for small scale systems like water draining. So it's true for storms, false for sinks...
Posted by Wally in La La Land on Fri May 20, 2005 at 05:55 PM
I agree.. looks like that truck is on the wrong side of the road for Australia.. I'd say it's the Midwest as well.
Posted by mizzouri in Missouri on Fri May 20, 2005 at 10:01 PM
Wally is right Harry. The corealis effect deals with low/high pressure areas. It goes the direction it goes because air is trying to travel into a low pressure area, but because the earth is spinning, it misses and then tries to rush into the low pressure area again, etc...causing a circling effect.
Ok, that's definitely not in scientific terms, but that's the way I understand it. Someone else is free to correct anything in there that is wrong, or explain it better.
The point though, is that the corealis effect should have no effect on something like water in a toilet.
Posted by Razela in San Diego, CA on Fri May 20, 2005 at 10:03 PM
Ok, that's definitely not in scientific terms, but that's the way I understand it. Someone else is free to correct anything in there that is wrong, or explain it better.
The point though, is that the corealis effect should have no effect on something like water in a toilet.
A search on Google for 'bunbury storm' produces a link to a story in 'The Australian' which mentions a recent storm in Bunbury. This page is full of Australians debating these photographs:
http://www.westernangler.com.au/forum/Storm_Photos/m_65768/tm.htm
It also includes what appear to be photographs of the aftermath. Being Australian, the forum participants can't express themselves very well, and so it's not really helpful. We'll have to wait until Snopes gets holds of this to know for sure.
Posted by Ashley Pomeroy on Sat May 21, 2005 at 04:36 AM
http://www.westernangler.com.au/forum/Storm_Photos/m_65768/tm.htm
It also includes what appear to be photographs of the aftermath. Being Australian, the forum participants can't express themselves very well, and so it's not really helpful. We'll have to wait until Snopes gets holds of this to know for sure.
Ashley, how bout 'shut the fuck up'. Is that expressing myself clearly.
Posted by Nettie in Perth, Western Australia on Sat May 21, 2005 at 07:11 AM
Oh dear nettie. 
Posted by Charybdis in Hell on Sat May 21, 2005 at 07:22 AM
sorry I don't like people being nasty to us aussies. Sorry Chary, did it lower your opinion of me???
Posted by Nettie in Perth, Western Australia on Sat May 21, 2005 at 07:58 AM
Having said that, it is an *angling* forum, so they probably aren't the cream of the crop... the tastiest fish in the catch, my little joke there. I want to stress that I don't think any less of the people there, just because they're Australian; I'm sure they make up for it in other ways.
Posted by Ashley Pomeroy on Sat May 21, 2005 at 09:15 AM
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