Hypoxia and Medicine

Why does yelling at high altitudes cause avalanches?

Or is that simply a myth?

Public Comments

1. Yelling causes vibration and therefore pressure waves. Coz of this pressure the snow melts and coz of melting the layer slides which causes pressure due to the weight of the slid snow and thereafter this process continues like a domino's effect causing avalanche. it is most prone when the sun is out and melting process is thereby faster.
2. avalanches are the result of the vibration set up in the snow when a loud sound is sufficient to cause it to come loose from the entire bank. and no, it's not a myth, but is the reason why ski resorts will shoot off a cannon when the snow along a ridge begins to show signs of instability. it is used to cause a controlled avalanch so as to prevent any dangerous snow falls from avalanches.
3. think of the ice mass as a solid mass.. this mass has cracked lines and planes in it... yelling is a wave that causes vibration and hence increases the size of the cracks.. untill at one point the area still holding on cannot resist the gravitational force pulling down on the above mass... then....... AVALANCHE........ that is why you have to yell a lot before you can cause any effect on the snow and cause an avalanch.... and on high altitudes.. you get eco which makes it worse when they happen alone is because there are many vocal vibrations in nature that contribute to these kind of disasters