Hurricane Winds Blast Solar Panels and Roof Tiles...On Purpose

SCIENCE -- September 7, 2012 at 12:20 PM EDT

Hurricane Winds Blast Solar Panels and Roof Tiles...On Purpose

At Florida International University, 12 giant fans mimic the intensity of a Category 5 hurricane, pummeling rooftops, building materials and solar panels with winds reaching 157 miles per hour.

A team of researchers led by civil engineer Arindam Gan Chowdhury have designed this 15-foot-tall "Wall of Wind" to simulate full-blown hurricanes. With it, they can test construction materials to determine their ability to withstand hurricane winds.

Watch them turn windspeeds up to 122 mph. The adhesive foam is rock solid, but the building itself? Just watch.

Miles O'Brien reports for the National Science Foundation's* Science Nation.

*For the record, the National Science Foundation is an underwriter of the NewsHour.

Beginning October 24, 2012, PBS NewsHour will allow open commenting for all registered users. We hope that the elimination of our moderation process will enable a more organic discussion amongst you, our audience. However, if a commenter violates our terms of use or abuses the commenting forum, their comment will be removed. We reserve the right to remove posts that do not follow these basic guidelines: comments must be relevant to the topic of the post; may not include profanity, personal attacks or hate speech; may not promote a business or raise money; may not be spam. Anything you post should be your own work. The PBS NewsHour reserves the right to read on the air and/or publish on its website or in any medium now known or unknown the comments or emails that we receive. By submitting comments, you agree to the PBS Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, which include more details.