How does the black box survive a plane crash? - ProProfs Discuss
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How does the black box survive a plane crash?

How does the black box survive a plane crash?

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Asked by I.Helen, Last updated: Nov 12, 2024

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9 Answers

R. Jones

R. Jones

Curious about the World

R. Jones
R. Jones, Student, Postgraduate, Calgary

Answered Jan 28, 2021

The reason why a black box can survive a plane crash even when other parts of the plane have been destroyed is that it is designed specifically to survive high temperatures and immense pressure. While the devices that make up a black box can be destroyed if they come in contact with water, they have been designed to withstand long periods in water.

For instance, a black box can withstand fire with a temperature of about 1100°C for about 60 minutes. However, the problem with a black box is that it can be very hard to find, especially if a plane crashes into an ocean.

The black box is an important part of a plane. It is designed specifically to record all information pertaining to a flight. It stores all parameters that could help determine the root cause of the crash. There is also another device that stores the conversations of the pilots before a plane crash occurs.

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E. Reyes

E. Reyes

Building buildings and building intelligence

E. Reyes
E. Reyes, Builder, graduate, Birmingham

Answered Jan 21, 2021

The purpose of black boxes is to survive a plane crash. They are indestructible, and they are designed to withstand high temperatures. Black boxes can handle flames that reach up to 2,000 degrees. They can also handle an impact that goes up to 310mph.

Planes normally have two black boxes. One of those boxes records the flight data. It stores information about the performance of the engine. The second box is the cockpit voice recorder, which records the conversations between the air traffic controllers and the flight crew. Even though they have the name black box, they are the color orange so that it can be easily found in the wreckage.

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G. Woods

G. Woods

Traveler and writer by profession.

G. Woods
G. Woods, College student, Graduate, Southampton

Answered Jan 21, 2021

Black boxes were created for the purpose of surviving a plane crash. They play an instrumental role in tracing the moments back before the crash happened. This helps in identifying the reason for the crash, as well as any communication that occurred before the crash happened. Black boxes are very powerful devices. They can handle a very high temperature, up to 2,000 degrees.

They can also handle a heavy impact, handling an impact that is up to 310 mph. It is able to handle this impact because the box is made of titanium. There are also boxes that are made of steel, which makes it strong.

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S. Barnes

S. Barnes

Driving down to Knowledge town

S. Barnes
S. Barnes, Chauffeur, Graduate, Seattle

Answered Jan 21, 2021

If you have ever read an article or heard a news story about a plane crash, you have probably read or heard the term black box. The black box is important in instances of a plane crash, because it can give an idea of what caused the crash. Despite the crash, a black box is able to make it through.

They are indestructible and they are made to handle flames and heats up to 2,000 degrees. Along with that, the black box can handle an impact of 310mph. Planes normally have 2 black boxes. One is responsible for recording the flight data. The second one will record the conversations that occur between the air traffic controller and the flight crew.

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Victoria Martian

Victoria Martian

I love to share my experiences online

Victoria Martian
Victoria Martian, Blogger, B.com in Journalism, New York

Answered Jan 19, 2021

The black box is especially designed to withstand enormous pressure, extremely high temperatures, and long periods underwater. The device must be able to survive a fire of 1,100 degrees Celsius an hour and a crushing force of 5,000 lbs.

The black box records two important kinds of information and is, for this purpose, made of two essential parts. The first, the Flight Data Recorder, gathers all the information about the flights, safeguarding hundreds of parameters that will show what happened to a plane at the time of the crash.

The second component is the voice recorder, which records the conversations of the pilots. Many planes crash because of pilot error, so recordings of pilots and staff discussions in the build-up to a catastrophe are quite important.

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H. Ruby

H. Ruby

H. Ruby
H. Ruby

Answered Jan 19, 2021

There are instances when the cause of a plane crash is unknown. There will just be some details that are available when people check out the black box that is usually found among the wreckage. The black box is made out of materials that are meant to withstand the plane crash. At the same time, it is also made well in order to do its job if needed.

They will be able to withstand strong pressures, high temperatures, and also long periods underwater although there are cases wherein it has been placed in water too long that it will not work anymore. There are some tests that this may undergo to check if it would be effective.

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O. Bickis

O. Bickis

Get immense pleasure in traveling and writing about visiting places.

O. Bickis
O. Bickis, Corporate employee, MBA, Stockton

Answered Jan 14, 2021

The black box is a device that was designed to aid in the investigation of incidents, especially in aviation. Firstly, understand that black box is just a term, it is not even a box, neither is it even black. It is majorly painted orange and looks more like a cylinder that is mounted on two big pieces of metal. It does not really resemble a tape recorder but resembles an air compressor more.

It comprises two components, which are the flight data recorder (FDR), and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR). The black box is basically made of titanium or stainless steel, which also helps it to survive a plane crash. The black box is designed to be sustained inside a 2000 degree fire burning for an hour.

It can crush with 5000 pounds per square inch of pressure for some minutes to sustain its impact. It was tested to hit at any material at 3400 times the force of gravity, and still maintain its good state. The box can survive a 10ft of a 500lb weight object of any kind, relatively, being dropped on it. With all these, a black box would survive almost every plane crash.

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J. Emmerich

J. Emmerich

J. Emmerich
J. Emmerich, Web Content Writer, New York City

Answered Oct 31, 2018

One thing that has not changed with black boxes is that they still play the role that they were used in the box. The black box is meant to survive a plane crash. It usually holds important information about the sounds that were heard on the plane. Usually, this is what the investigators refer to so that they will know what has possibly caused the accident.

The outer area of the black box is known to be made of steel or titanium. This explains why this is very strong. It also has a second layer which will serve as the insulation. Lastly, the third layer will be made of thermal so that the black box will be able to survive extreme temperatures.

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M. Wright

M. Wright

M. Wright
M. Wright

Answered May 17, 2018

Black boxes are virtually indestructible because they are manufactured to withstand flames up to 2,000 degrees and an impact velocity of about 310 mph. There are usually two of them in an airplane. One is the flight data recorder box and the other is the cockpit voice recorder box. The flight data recorder captures and stores information on the engine performance and other flight details.

The cockpit voice recorder captures and stores conversations between the flight crew and air traffic controllers. Do you know these boxes are not really black? They are painted bright orange in order to be more visible and easier to find amid a debris field.

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