NIST Press Conference Concludes
And now, something serious for a change…though there really isn’t enough content to determine that yet, so this might through things off a bit.
As it was just released today, I have yet to read the full NIST report on the collapse. I write this short article only in the hope that others will take an interest in the subject and follow these reports through to their conclusion and with an open mind.
Only a few minutes ago, Dr. Shyam Sunder concluded his press conference on behalf of the NIST. Sunder was the lead investigator of a group charged with the difficult task of providing a scientifically sound explanation for the collapse of WTC 7. The conclusion of the NIST, as Sunder explained, relies on a phenomenon called “thermal expansion” in which critical construction elements expand in the heat of widespread fires, causing damage to the integrity of the surrounding architecture. Perhaps most importantly, Sunder asserted that though this phenomenon had never before caused a steel-framed building to collapse, it was WTC 7’s long-span and asymmetrically designed floors that led to its literal downfall.
Additionally, the NIST is asserting that the structurally damaging fires in WTC 7 were fuelled not by jet fuel or flaming debris from the impact explosions at WTC 1 and 2 (though this is possibly how they began), but rather by office furnishings. Dr. Sunder stated that due to a malfunctioning sprinkler system, the furniture in the building continued to burn until thermal expansion caused a progressive collapse beginning at column 79. This is important, because it recognizes the distinct point within the structure of the building where, based on video evidence of the event, collapse begins.
Issues of the free-fall speed of the collapse persist, however, and when asked about the period of collapse lasting for less than 8 seconds and the appearance of simultaneous structural failures throughout the building, Sunder responded that the collapse was a progressive event that spread very quickly throughout the building from East to West. No mention was made of the molten steel found beneath the rubble of WTC 7 (the same was found under WTC 1 and 2 and continued to burn for weeks after 9/11). This was a particularly strange omission, considering that the high temperatures produced by burning jet fuel have long been used, not always with factual merit, to explain the presence of the liquid metal. Now that the jet fuel theory is officially defunct, why was there molten steel?
It is at times difficult for those of us without degrees in physics or engineering to understand and assess the feasibility of various theories associated with 9/11. That is why it is especially important for all of us to do as much research as possible and to read scholarly work from people of diverse opinions. For an alternative perspective to that of the NIST, check out the work of Dr. Steven Jones.
- Mike
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