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The Channel Tunnel

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Subido el 28 de mayo de 2007 por EducaMadrid

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NASA Sci Files segment exploring the development, design, and creation of the Channel Tunnel.

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Hello, we're looking for Mr Storer. 00:00:00
That would be me. 00:00:06
Hi, you must be Rosie and Wendy. 00:00:07
I received your email. 00:00:09
How may I help you? 00:00:10
We're investigating transportation and in our research we learnt that advances in transportation 00:00:11
usually result of having a problem and needing a solution. 00:00:16
The Channel Tunnel was definitely a solution to a very old problem. 00:00:19
13,000 years ago, Britain was connected to mainland Europe by a natural isthmus or land 00:00:22
bridge. 00:00:27
Then a change in sea level caused by the last ice age created the English Channel. 00:00:28
It seems we've had the technology to build tunnels for a long time. 00:00:33
Why wasn't it built earlier? 00:00:37
Two centuries ago, Napoleon agreed that a tunnel should be built, but after war broke 00:00:38
out between France and England, the tunnel idea was abandoned. 00:00:42
Even though there were several plans for a tunnel, there were still technological problems 00:00:46
to overcome. 00:00:49
What kind of problems? 00:00:50
At the time, people didn't know much about the geology under the English Channel, so 00:00:51
they were unsure whether they could bore through it. 00:00:55
There was also a ventilation problem. 00:00:57
How did they overcome the problem? 00:00:59
In the 1870s, both England and France agreed to work on a joint tunnel scheme. 00:01:01
With government approval, the tunnel companies started on the first serious scientific geological 00:01:06
exploration to find out just what kind of rocks are under the seabed. 00:01:10
What did they discover? 00:01:14
They found a bed of chalk marl which was perfect for a tunnel. 00:01:15
It was easy to dig and impervious to water. 00:01:18
It could also stand up without supporting walls and was thick enough to hold a tunnel. 00:01:21
So why didn't they dig the tunnel? 00:01:24
England made several attempts. 00:01:26
In 1880, testing was carried out with a tunnel boring machine. 00:01:27
The following year, another attempt was made, but abandoned again. 00:01:30
At least they kept trying. 00:01:37
Yes, finally in the 1980s, the British and French governments commissioned more studies 00:01:38
and decided that a traditional rail tunnel would be the least risky and the best value 00:01:42
for the money. 00:01:46
How long did it take to build? 00:01:47
About seven years. 00:01:48
The builders bored the tunnels from 1987 to 1991, and from 1991 to 1994, workers fitted 00:01:50
out the tunnels and terminal. 00:01:57
Would you like to see the tunnel? 00:01:58
That would be fantastic. 00:02:00
This is amazing. 00:02:04
Why are there three tunnels? 00:02:06
Actually, there are three interconnected tubes. 00:02:09
Two are the rail tracks for going each way, plus one service tunnel used for maintenance 00:02:11
and as a safe haven in case of emergencies. 00:02:16
Of course, you want to make the tunnel as safe as possible, especially for such a long tunnel. 00:02:19
How long is the tunnel? 00:02:31
It's about 50 kilometres total with 37 kilometres underwater. 00:02:32
Its average depth is about 40 metres under the seabed. 00:02:36
I imagine it took a lot of people to build something so complicated. 00:02:39
Yes, it took over 13,000 engineers, technicians and workers to build over 150 kilometres of tunnels. 00:02:42
That's remarkable. 00:02:48
Can you drive through the tunnel or do you have to take the train? 00:02:49
You can do both, sort of. 00:02:52
Trains operated by Eurotunnel use the tunnel to carry cars, coaches, motorcycles, caravans and lorries. 00:02:54
You just drive your car into the train and travel with your car through the tunnel. 00:03:00
EWS carries containerised freight and the Eurostar trains carry foot passengers. 00:03:05
It seems like the Tunnel Tunnel handles all kinds of travellers and transportation. 00:03:10
Most definitely. 00:03:14
In the past year, Eurotunnel carried over 2.25 million cars, about 70,000 coaches and 1.6 million lorries. 00:03:15
Eurostar carried 6.3 million passengers and EWS carried 1.7 million tonnes of freight. 00:03:23
That's a lot of people and freight. 00:03:30
Correct. 00:03:32
And with the opening of the tunnel, people can travel between Britain and mainland Europe any time of the day or night and in any kind of weather. 00:03:33
It's now possible to have breakfast in London, lunch in Paris and dinner in Barcelona, Spain. 00:03:39
It certainly makes the world seem smaller. 00:03:45
Not at this time, but Frank Davidson has a vision of a transatlantic tunnel someday. 00:03:47
A tunnel across the Atlantic Ocean? That would be impossible. 00:03:51
That might seem so now, but hundreds of years ago, so did the Channel Tunnel. 00:03:54
Mr Davidson proposes that a floating tunnel be anchored to the sea floor 00:03:58
and a maglev train be used, travelling at speeds up to 5,000 miles an hour. 00:04:02
You could literally live in the US and work in Europe. 00:04:07
Or live in Europe and work as a treehouse detector during the day. 00:04:10
Thanks, Mr Starr, you have been most helpful. 00:04:14
You're welcome. Why don't we go and finish our ride through the tunnel? 00:04:16
Sure, sounds great. 00:04:19
That's all for our investigation. 00:04:23
Be sure and visit the NASA SciFiles website for more exciting adventures and scientific inquiry. 00:04:25
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Idioma/s:
en
Niveles educativos:
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Autor/es:
NASA LaRC Office of Education
Subido por:
EducaMadrid
Licencia:
Reconocimiento - No comercial - Sin obra derivada
Visualizaciones:
302
Fecha:
28 de mayo de 2007 - 15:33
Visibilidad:
Público
Enlace Relacionado:
NASAs center for distance learning
Duración:
04′ 31″
Relación de aspecto:
4:3 Hasta 2009 fue el estándar utilizado en la televisión PAL; muchas pantallas de ordenador y televisores usan este estándar, erróneamente llamado cuadrado, cuando en la realidad es rectangular o wide.
Resolución:
480x360 píxeles
Tamaño:
27.20 MBytes

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