Mini Tornados and Cold Fireballs: A Karman Vortex Hypothesis
Here is something I’ve been thinking about.
A. Karman Vortex Streets
These occur when wind moves past an obstacle, like a mountain or ridge.
Swirling air vortices can form in a repeating pattern, like ripples behind a boulder in a stream.
With the right wind speed and direction, they can move quickly downhill.
B. Temperature Inversion
This may have been present that night, trapping colder air at ground level.
It creates unstable air masses that can move unpredictably.
Combined with wind and terrain, it could allow small-scale tornadic funnels to form and descend.
C. Resulting Atmospheric Events
Mini tornados may have ripped down the mountainside.
These may not have physically struck the tent, but could have created violent wind noise and low pressure.
The sounds or shockwaves may have caused a snow slab to loosen and partially collapse onto the tent.
D. Panic and Reaction
The group may have believed a stronger event was coming.
They exited quickly, some only half dressed.
a. Rustem had one shoe on and one still inside the tent.
b. Others wore no boots or jackets.
This suggests a very sudden decision to leave, possibly in fear.
Infrasound from the vortex is a possible trigger for some.
a. It may have disoriented or panicked one or two of them.
b. Others may have reacted to that fear more than the sound itself.
c. These natural triggers could have played off each other in a cascade effect.
E. Cold Fireballs
These are a rare phenomenon caused by unusual electrical activity in the atmosphere.
They have been reported in areas with shifting temperature and pressure.
If a cold fireball was seen or heard, that could have added to the panic.
a. Even a perceived threat of one could create fear.
b. The group may not have waited to confirm what they were dealing with.
F. Theories Working Together
Not all explanations need to be mutually exclusive.
A snow slab may have caused physical pressure.
A vortex may have caused infrasound or noise.
A fireball may have been seen in the sky.
These combined could easily trigger panic in a high stress situation.
A small number of the group may have panicked first.
a. The rest may have followed instinctively or out of concern.
b. There was no time to analyze what was actually going on.
G. Why This Matters
It gives us a chain of natural causes that do not require military or criminal theories.
A vortex, inversion, and slab collapse could work together to explain their sudden flight.
The tent shows no scorching or blast damage, but was partially collapsed, supporting this idea.
This theory allows for a blend of known science and human behavior.
It avoids needing every hiker to react the same way for the same reason.
Topic: Karman Vortex Street (Read 8002 times)
