Why the Bridges Failed
- By Rachel VanCott
- Posted 07.01.08
- NOVA scienceNOW
The 2007 collapse of Minnesota's I-35W bridge killed 13 people.
Tragic as it was, the collapse is helping engineers foresee and
act on structural problems and prevent possible failures of
other spans. In this slide show, see how lessons learned from
past collapses have helped improve bridge safety, and how
"smart" sensing technology is already aiding the monitoring of
bridges both new and old.
Credits
Images
- (I-35W Mississippi River Bridge images)
- Courtesy Minnesota Department of Transportation;
- (Honeymoon Bridge)
- Courtesy Niagara Falls, Ontario Public Library;
- (Tacoma Narrows Bridge)
-
Courtesy Tacoma Public Library, Richards Studio
Collection;
- (Silver Bridge)
-
Courtesy West Virginia State Archives, Maurice Hamill
Collection;
- (West Side Highway)
-
Courtesy Library of Congress, Historic American
Engineering Record;
- (Mianus River Bridge)
- © AP Images;
- (San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge)
- Courtesy California Department of Transportation;
- (Songsu Bridge)
- © AP Images;
- (Bixby Creek Bridge)
- © Jerry Moorman/istockphoto.com
Related Links
-
Can we engineer bridges that tell us what's wrong with them
before it's too late?
-
The University of Michigan's Jerome Lynch answers questions
about the future for "smart" bridges, and more.
-
In this audio interview, structural engineer Michael Todd
describes the state of bridge monitoring around the world.
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