No one has ever seen the world's tallest tower collapse... until now

Рет қаралды 114,252

Күн бұрын

The 646 m (2120 ft) tall Warsaw Radio Mast was the world's tallest structure for 17 years. The Polish tower has only been surpassed in height by the Burj Khalifa and the Merdeka 118. However, it collapsed during repairs on 8 August 1991, and no footage has ever surfaced of the collapse. In this video, you will witness a world first simulation of the collapse courtesty of the Bullet Constraints Builder add-on for the Blender animation software. The structure has been meticulously modelled and the result is a realistic simulation that gives a glimpse into how the real collapse unfolded.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro Montage
00:18 Background about tower
02:14 Steel lattice structures
04:07 Features of tower
04:55 How did the tower collapse?
06:16 Collapse simulation
Credits:
Background music: GTA V Main Menu Theme
Intro music: "Epic Hollywood Trailer" by Daddy_s_Music
Spaghetti snapping footage: • Snapping Spaghetti
KVLY-TV Tower Footage: • The tallest structure ...

Пікірлер: 165

@5Dale65 8 ай бұрын

There are different stories about the collapse. I personally read of successfully replacing the main rope with two temporary ones, but then hours after workers left the area one of the temporary ropes slipped off of it's clamp, causing the disaster. This is why there were no killed or injuried, as everybody had left the site prior to the collapse. Also I heard that the signal wasn't getting it's way to the Antarctica, but it could have been received in the north and central Africa. The mast was never rebuilt, after years of waiting they finally replaced it with another one (actually an array of two "half-wave" masts) near the city of Solec Kujawski (/solets kooyavski/). You can still receive it at 225 kHz, AM band of course. It's not as powerful as the old one, but I believe it still covers most of Europe and maybe even larger area. Greetings from Poland.

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

Thank you for the information. I researched this video primarily from the English Wikipedia article, I imagine I would have missed a lot of Polish sources that have more information. Your account of the collapse definitely seems possible and would explain why no one was injured despite the scale of the collapse. I am glad to hear the replacement masts still have such impressive transmission capabilities.

@igorzherebiatev5751 8 ай бұрын

225 kHz? Long waves? I will try to catch up with it on my old radio. One more reason to restore it

@5Dale65 6 ай бұрын

@@igorzherebiatev5751 Yes friend that's it. And by now, after the government changed in Poland, there soon will be no more right-wing propaganda in the public radio :)

@10ON10 7 ай бұрын

*You have just 63 subscribers?? You have great quality content, I am sure with content like this you channel will see some good growth in the time to come* 👍

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

Thanks for the feedback, I appreciate it!

@Sphinx8173 5 ай бұрын

Not if his facts are incorrect

@Aisers 3 ай бұрын

@Powerlineclockespana3552 5 күн бұрын

@@AisersOUT

@dannydetonator 8 ай бұрын

Underrated content. Nearly forgot Poland had the world's tallest structure before it collapsed. What physics SIM did you use for this?

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

Thanks for the feedback, this was made using Blender and the "Bullet Constraints Builder" add-on. There is a great tutorial on how to use it by KZfaqr "EarthquakeSim".

@dukeofthedance8062 8 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex At first I thought it was Kerbal Space Program the way it fell in 1st 10secs.

@vvti18 5 ай бұрын

Love the GTA5 pause music

@szymex2222 8 ай бұрын

Finally someone did it... greetings From Poland!

@kc4cvh 6 ай бұрын

Thanks to the Warsaw Antenna, the 629-meter KTHI-TV tower in Blanchard, North Dakota has the distinction of twice being the tallest structure on Earth: from its 1963 erection until the Warsaw Antenna's completion in 1974, and then from the Warsaw Antenna's 1991 collapse until Burj Khalifa "topped off" in 2008. The Blanchard tower, now KVLY-DTV, still stands sixty years later.

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

The Blanchard tower has an amazing legacy.

@joefish6091 Ай бұрын

@@Contraflex Theres a wonderful TV episode on Big Machines, with a HD cameraman going to the top during an antenna replacement. Got a twinge of vertigo just watching it on 720P. I see theres a nine minute piece on TowerandTurbine channel on UTube.

@Contraflex Ай бұрын

@@joefish6091 Thanks for sharing the antenna replacement video. What an incredible logistics operation. Those workers definitely earn their pay!

@popiszo9367 6 ай бұрын

Wake up. The antenna was not part of the Soviet Union's radio communications. He was in Poland. It was a Polish radio station, not a Soviet one. The antenna was not located in Warsaw, but in Konstantynów.

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

I apologise for mistakenly labelling it as a Soviet radio mast, for some reason I thought Poland was part of the Soviet Union... geography is not my strong suit. I will do more research next time.

@marcelsmith5176 5 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex No, no, we were a seperate country in the Eastern Block (economic/military ties with Russia back then) Thanks for the video. Cool that you're interested in old radio towers 😂😂 Ever thought of becoming a tower technician ? ;) (I think it's a cool thing to do for a living, climb these towers) Anyhow, best wishes to you 😊

@Contraflex 5 ай бұрын

@@marcelsmith5176 I am far too scared of heights to ever climb one of these towers... I will stick to simulating them 🤣

@nefarious_0969 8 ай бұрын

In Poland, we generally liked to broadcast the radio. We had several transmitters capable of transmitting signals far beyond the horizon. And every time some man had to ruin it. (babice transatlantic, several radio broadcasting centers disrupting propaganda radios from the west during the USSR)

@aclsalrfp 7 ай бұрын

The great pyramid held the title of tallest building far longer than the Empire building.

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

That's very true, perhaps I should have have clarified that I was talking about the modern era.

@ActiveAussie2024 7 ай бұрын

That's an insane height for a radio mast. Most of them are nothing even close to that altitude.

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

It truly is, and maybe we'll never see a taller one built, given the decline of radio.

@sky173 6 ай бұрын

Wow, your sub count will skyrocket if you keep producing content like this. Nice work.

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for the feedback!

@LiquidAudio 7 ай бұрын

Amazing video, thanks for making it!

@robertgaines-tulsa 7 ай бұрын

I bet that must have looked really creepy when it fall like some enormous snake falling to the earth.

@DaveC2729 8 ай бұрын

The guys that changed the lights on that tower had it easy with that elevator. I've met some guys who change light bulbs on towers next to where I live, and they have to climb the side of the towers by hand. After talking with them I was like, "Nope, I'm not in good enough shape to do that." The towers near me are like maybe a third, or a fifth, or an even smaller fraction of the height of that tower, but that's more than I wanna mess with. I wouldn't mind going that high, but not under my own power thanks. :P

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

The elevator was certainly a handy addition; even so, I wouldn't want to be stuck in that tiny thing for 90 minutes.

@JauRan123 8 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex It better have an open end and offer an emergency parachute. No way am I stuck in there for 90 minutes

@johnkern7075 7 ай бұрын

I'm friends with the engineer that worked at our local TV station. He said their tower has an elevator however I believe he said it only takes you halfway up. You have to climb the rest of the way.

@robertpurdy701 7 ай бұрын

If you climb even a 100 foot ladder you feel it for days, or at least I do. @@johnkern7075

@hugoknight1 5 ай бұрын

Excellent presentation! I love these kind of computer simulated disaster recreations. Very well done. I feel lucky to be subscriber #310. You're channel will be in the 10's of thousands (and beyond) in no time if you keep this kind of production quality!

@Contraflex 4 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for the feedback! I look forward to making more videos when I have the time.

@rideshareog 6 ай бұрын

The Burj Khalifa and the Warsaw Tower share something. No restrooms.

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

You are half correct, apparently the Burj Khalifa isn't connected to Dubai's sewerage network, so wastewater is removed by truck.

@rideshareog 6 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex There are emergency facilities but people employed there are expected not to use them while in the building. Ewww

@doofer80 Ай бұрын

@@Contraflexit was just recently finally connected to the sewerage system. Keep up the good work, it’d be cool to see a video about the upcoming Southbank by Beulah which will be Australia’s tallest building and have the tallest vertical garden in the world.

@Contraflex Ай бұрын

@@doofer80 Thanks for the idea, I haven't heard of this building so I will definitely do some research on it

@johncamp2567 8 ай бұрын

Nicely presented and impressive simulations.

@_Liphia 6 ай бұрын

Great video! You deserve a lot more subscribers!

@10Kview 6 ай бұрын

Subbed just to thank you for the great work

@garysmith8455 6 ай бұрын

I believe that more then the wind, removing a set of guy wires on one side would cause a tremendous 'offset' to the others still attached to the tower. Their collective WEIGHT alone would pull the structure over for sure!

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

That's a very good point, I'm sure the unbalanced lateral forces resulting from the weight of the guy wires would have contributed to the collapse.

@bluejack644 6 ай бұрын

"You built your tower strong & tall, don't you know it had to fall someday." (Townes Van Zandt--Tower Song)

@theMYHEAVEN 7 ай бұрын

Ciekawe i dobre przedstawienie symulacji upadku masztu.

@user-pj9yd1uo6m 8 ай бұрын

Good explanations and animations! Good luck!

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

Thank you for the kind feedback 👍

@dukeofthedance8062 8 ай бұрын

Usually metal collapsing on itself snaps and breaks, for some reason the simulation had the "No breaks" effect on and it magically stayed in 1 whole piece. Amazing? This really did remind me of Kerbal Space program.

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

In this simulation, each steel member can separate from other steel members if the stress at the connection interface between the two members is sufficiently high. You can see steel members separating from each other at multiple points in the video; these locations would have experienced stresses high enough to break the connection. I do agree with you, for the most part, the structure primarily stayed in one whole piece. However, if you look at real photos of the tower post-collapse, you will see the tower is mostly intact and you can regonise the original truss structure. With regards to individual steel members snapping or breaking, this is a valid point and would definitely be possible in the simulation software, but would require each steel member to be subdivided and would thus increase simulation time; and it wouldn't necessarily give the most realistic simulation. Thanks for the feedback 👍

@dukeofthedance8062 8 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex Hey, thanks for the reply and greater understanding too. Simulation runs can lead to seeing some pretty incredible things. I removed other post about ___ . Don't want anyone else to see it and get negative ideas as you never know with some things. Peace out and great luck in life.

@basicallyhim8362 4 ай бұрын

That tower would be scary seeing it. Collapsing 😬

@johnkern7075 7 ай бұрын

Well that's too bad. I've heard of Tower collapses before and it usually involves somebody trying to do something to the guy wires.

6 ай бұрын

Great stuff, just keep at it mate! You'll be one of the biggest infotainment channels on YT if you keep it up for a year or two! I remember watching first Real Engineering videos and seeing a spark of potential in the creator. I see the exact same thing here!

6 ай бұрын

Note for my future self: I'm the 227th subscriber here )

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for your words of encouragement, it means a lot! I look forward to making more videos when I have the time.

@scratchpad7954 8 ай бұрын

This is triggering an internal megalophobia and acrophobia that was also triggered watching the trailer for Fall.

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

I'm sorry to hear that, but thanks for teaching me two new words!

@dr_ned_flanders 5 ай бұрын

Looks quite realistic. How does the final wreckage position compare to images of the wreckage of the collapsed tower?

@Contraflex 5 ай бұрын

I'm not aware of any images showing the entire footprint of the collapse, but some close up photos show large sections of the tower remained intact, similar to what is seen in this video.

@MrKasenom 6 ай бұрын

Amazing video

@stevenstreets695 7 ай бұрын

Just proves that length isn't everything 😜

@Christopher-hx6xm 2 ай бұрын

The cables are so delicate that several people have been killed...the one tower was in nebraska it allegedly 6 miles tall...but i misread it

@DanKoerner 5 ай бұрын

This is fascinating and a great video. I don't understand from an engineering perspective why there wasn't redundancy in the design. It seems like losing one guy wire should not cause an almost immediate catastrophic failure of the structure (I know there were other factors involved, but still). You would think the structure itself should be able to resist some deformation, and that the numerous guy wires are simply there for added stability. But then, I'm not an engineer so what do I know XD

@Contraflex 5 ай бұрын

I think under normal loading conditions, the failure of a single guy wire would not cause the entire tower to collapse. However, once the tower was struck by the extreme wind gust while the guy wire was missing, it resulted in the tower being displaced enough to cause progressive collapse. It likely would have been too expensive to design the tower to survive this extremely unlikely scenario; a potentially one in one thousand year wind gust happening at the same time as a guy wire being replaced (which would presumably only take a few hours to replace). Technically the structure could be designed to withstand a one in one thousand year wind gust without any guy wires, but it would require extremely large steel members and would be very expensive; at that point you are no longer designing a guyed mast, you are designing a skyscraper.

@fasillimerick7394 7 ай бұрын

Wasn't there another significant collapse that year involving the Soviet Union?

@jsEMCsquared 6 ай бұрын

Amazing animation ! Mesmerizing

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@ASilesian246 2 ай бұрын

If i could prevent one thing in history from happening, i would have prevented the mast from collapsing

@corigliano53 6 ай бұрын

GTA5 background music....nice

@manalalsaeed8868 5 ай бұрын

perfect work man keep going im supporting you 👍 its remind me of BATTLEFIELD 3 caspian border map when the antenna tower fall .... can you make a video about it please ? and thanks ❤

@Contraflex 4 ай бұрын

I definitely thought of that BF3 map as well when I made this video. Thanks for the feedback!

@robhaywood6783 7 ай бұрын

so the best place for someone to be standing when that happened was right at or in the base of that tower

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

I believe the concrete foundation of the mast survived and is still at the site, so the base was definitely built to last.

@benroof851 7 ай бұрын

Many thanks for this video and regards from The Netherlands.

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

@chibinyra 6 ай бұрын

At least it (probably) fell within it's own footprint + guy wires.

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

Yes, the collapse appeared to be localised in a small radius near the base of the tower. If anyone was in the vicinity during the collapse, I'm sure they would have had sufficient time to run away from the base and avoid being struck.

@TheDylanJoyce 6 ай бұрын

Poor Tower....

@Shawn666Hellion 7 ай бұрын

I remember years ago reading an article in Guinness book of world records and this tower was mentioned, its a shame it collected

@michaeldenn5898 7 ай бұрын

Very cool content.❤ 1 ?-- why do most of the cables break like spaghetti? Seems to me that would not happen. Probably just a matter that isn’t that important. Not meant as a criticism just an observation.

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

I agree with you 100%, I don't think the cables would snap like that in reality. There isn't an easy way to model the cables in the simulation software, they are basically just a series of straight tubes connected end to end, and once the stress between each tube exceeds the tensile strength of steel, they break apart. I think in future I would make the cables have infinite strength so they don't snap. Thanks for the feedback!

@trainslover6809 3 ай бұрын

Am i able to add the music to my songs playlist or is it something that you made please tell me

@Contraflex 3 ай бұрын

The song is from the GTA V Pause Menu, feel free to use it.

@trainslover6809 3 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex thanks

@MattHall05 7 ай бұрын

This thing probably would've collapse anyways even if the catastrophic maintenance failure didn't happen.

@erbenton07 7 ай бұрын

Is this a physics simulation or just an artists rendering?

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

It is a rigid body physics simulation created with Blender and the Bullet Constraints Builder add-on.

@Andy-df5fj 6 ай бұрын

Still haven't seen it.

@williampalchak7574 7 ай бұрын

It's not the power, it's the size of the tower.

@wheressteve 7 ай бұрын

That's what she said.

@MurzynZBangladeszu 5 ай бұрын

Girls: I can't believe he didn't cry at the Titanic! Do men even have feelings? Me: ...

@Contraflex 4 ай бұрын

🤣🤣🤣

@chrisduhaime5689 2 ай бұрын

Did they replace it or call quits

@ASilesian246 2 ай бұрын

It was planned to be rebuilt, but the people living there protested against it and it was instead replaced by two smaller masts somewhere else in Poland

@Powerlineclockespana3552 2 ай бұрын

Can you do the tinsley towers please because it’s my favorite cooling tower

@dapolcio3405 Ай бұрын

WHAT? It wasn't a part of soviet communication network. It was just radio mast for Poles living abroad. There were 10 mln Poles living abroad and Polish goverment wanted them to have abiblity to listen Polish radio. That's all - no soviets were involved in the project.

@Contraflex Ай бұрын

You are definitely correct. Apologies for the mistake. I foolishly assumed it was Soviet related due to it's proximity to the USSR.

@oldseer7610 8 ай бұрын

Insanity.

@Aisers 3 ай бұрын

subbed

@standard74521 6 ай бұрын

@stevenm3141 5 ай бұрын

If this collapsed because of one wire out of place. It shows how precarious and unsafe such as structure is.

@Contraflex 4 ай бұрын

Such a structure is definitely not as stable as a skyscraper, for example, but it is orders of magnitude cheaper and will rarely have any humans near it who could be harmed if it collapses.

@dadsdiabetes1067 6 ай бұрын

your telling me that the poles made a big pole

@ledmcthunder5012 6 ай бұрын

Is that gta loading music I hear?

@johnfitzgerald2339 7 ай бұрын

Simulating the tower on a 100% reflective surface makes perception of the tower's height and configuration nearly impossible. It's very distracting.

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

Thank you for the feedback, I agree. Will keep this in mind for future videos.

@BOUNCER48 8 күн бұрын

It's called RCN Konstantynów, not Warsaw radio tower...

@Contraflex 7 күн бұрын

Thank you for clarifying. For international viewers I think Warsaw Radio Mast is clearer.

@roberthayes6329 6 ай бұрын

Meters?

@StrangeScaryNewEngland 7 ай бұрын

In the start of this video are you using GTA V loading music?

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

The entire video uses the GTA V main menu music. I find it nice and ambient, and as a bonus KZfaq doesn't flag it for copyright.

@Calaban619 6 ай бұрын

And they say Space Engineers Clang physics isn't realistic

@MrMarkar1959 6 ай бұрын

wonder if they listened to WOWO Little Red Barn Program👍🏼

@kyle333halfevil 2 ай бұрын

Suddenly i want to play gta 5

@Contraflex Ай бұрын

Give it a year or two and you'll be able to play GTA 6 instead...

@perlaa.2204 5 күн бұрын

1. Maszt przewalił się z powodu błędów człowieka 2. Maszt spadł na 2 części a nie na wiele

@leerzeichen1910 2 ай бұрын

if nobody dies i don't think it was a problem...

@TheFacelessTwo 6 ай бұрын

Hey man. Love your video. Nitpicker mode: the elevator wasn't powered by a diesel engine. It was a petrol engine from the polish supermini Fiat 126p (communist "people's car"). Cheers 😘

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for the feedback. That is very interesting that it was powered by an automobile engine, out of interest where did you learn about that?

@TheFacelessTwo 5 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex This was mentioned by a man named Marian Siedlarek, who was a manager of the entire object (sorry, English isn't my first language and manager is not the exact word I'm looking for, more like a master technician, something like that). Basically they swapped the original engine for the automobile one because servicing the original one and having to import parts from Switzerland soon proved too costly. I remember reading about it years ago, it's probably still somewhere on the internet, just needs some digging. Starting with the end of the 70s polish economy was going to shit and this went on well into the 90s, so in view of that makeshift repairs like this totally made sense.

@jordanthorng6467 5 ай бұрын

What’s the song called

@Contraflex 5 ай бұрын

GTA V Menu Music by Tangerine Dream.

@jordanthorng6467 5 ай бұрын

Ok thank you

@jordanthorng6467 5 ай бұрын

Keep that reply on there so I can remember

@tOxIc_TrEaSuRe 6 ай бұрын

"global radio broadcasts"? how is that possible ?

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

The rumor that the broadcasts could be heard in Antarctica might be exaggerated, but broadcasts could certainly be heard throughout Europe.

@tOxIc_TrEaSuRe 6 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex i saw an old goverment film about a radio mast, guessing 1950s said it could transmit anywhere in the world ---- prolly because it's flat

@denzzlinga 5 ай бұрын

@@tOxIc_TrEaSuRe as far as i know you can create radio waves that somehow get reflected by athmosphere, and therefore can travel arround the globe.

@narutofanz4 Ай бұрын

You made a huge flaw with your simulation, you stated the guy lines were anchored to cylindrical anchors you used rectangular anchors in the demo.

@Contraflex Ай бұрын

You have very good attention to detail!

@narutofanz4 Ай бұрын

@@Contraflex not hating, still a great video thanks for the content

@Contraflex Ай бұрын

@@narutofanz4 Don't worry, I didn't take it the wrong way, thanks for watching 👍

@Danaman117 3 ай бұрын

We should be building down not up, just like the government.

@Contraflex 3 ай бұрын

Subterranean structures definitely have their benefits, but they probably aren't appropriate for radio transmission.

@gameinattic7046 2 ай бұрын

Hes using the gta loading music

@gameinattic7046 2 ай бұрын

Its giving my insane ammounts of nostaligia

@DavidJones-me7yr 5 ай бұрын

So,, it mostly fell downward from an upward Direction?😂😂

@RinoaL 6 ай бұрын

I must admit you do pick some awful camera angles for this. particularly at 6:18 and 2:04 They seemed very clumsily framed

@Contraflex 6 ай бұрын

I appreciate the detailed feedback from a channel of your size. I will endeavour to improve the framing in future videos. Thanks for watching!

@user-rd7rt8cb1m 6 ай бұрын

Poland not rebuild Warsaw radio tower

@popiszo9367 6 ай бұрын

She was never in Warsaw. The antenna was located in Konstantynów. It was rebuilt in a different place and form (330 i 289 m). Radio Broadcasting Center in Solec Kujawski.

@andreasaunders197 5 ай бұрын

With 5 guy wires at 72 deg apart you can lose a wire and survive. 3 at 120 is "engineering powered by vodka".

@Contraflex 4 ай бұрын

Clearly the engineers of this mast decided the extra stability and redunandancy was not worth the 66% increase in wire costs.

@cupidstunt22 3 күн бұрын

Whoopsie

@RezaulKarim-cz9kn 2 ай бұрын

413th Subscriber

@dicdicd1767 8 ай бұрын

No need to indicate feet!!

@Contraflex 8 ай бұрын

Trust me, I wish I didn't have to, but I don't want to ostracize any American viewers.

@BL-jt3qt 7 ай бұрын

Clickbait title. Showing an animated simulation is NOT seeing it happen. 👎

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

Valid point, however, there is no video footage of it happening, so this simulation is the closest thing. The thumbnail also clearly states that it is a simulation.

@BL-jt3qt 7 ай бұрын

@@Contraflex However, your title is still false.

@Contraflex 7 ай бұрын

@@BL-jt3qt Thank you for the feedback and engaging with the video!