Firing into the Sky

[Robin128]

"Shooting an automatic weapon into the sky to signal an occasion one welcomes is a popular practice in much of the world, as the footage of Libyan anti-Gaddafi forces seizing the main square of the capital city has demonstrated.

But it is a potentially fatal activity, which regularly results in the deaths of bystanders.

"These bullets go a long way up when they're fired," says ballistics expert David Dyson. "But you don't know where they're going to land - there's always a chance of them causing serious harm or death."

Examples of fatalities due to celebratory gunfire abound.

Three people in the Philippines died due to stray bullets fired to welcome the arrival of the new year 2011.

In 2010 a Turkish bridegroom killed three relatives when he fired an AK-47 at his own wedding. In the same year, Jordan's King Abdullah II ordered his country's authorities to clamp down on the practice after two people were killed and 13 more injured in one incident.

When the Iraqi football team defeated Vietnam in 2007's Asia Cup, three people were killed in Baghdad amid widespread gunshots as fans celebrated. Celebratory gunfire in Kuwait after the end of the Gulf War in 1991 was blamed for 20 deaths.

The practice is not restricted to Asia and the Middle East. A US study found that 118 people were treated for random "falling-bullet injuries" at one Los Angeles medical centre between 1985 and 1992, resulting in the deaths of 38.

Additionally, the government of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia also ran a poster campaign with the slogan "Bullets Are Not Greeting Cards - Celebrate Without Weapons". In 2005, Serbian authorities warned their citizens that "every bullet that is fired up must come down" ahead of New Year's Eve.

Studies suggest that, although the velocity of a falling bullet is lower than that of one which has just been fired, it is still sufficient to be fatal.

According to a 1962 study, .30 calibre rounds can reach terminal velocities of 300 feet (91m) per second as they fall. More recent research has indicated that 200 feet (61m) per second is enough to penetrate the skull."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14616491

[Rifleman798]

Yep, Those pointy bits of lead do come back down. Whilst in Iraq in camp I was walking behind someone when they suddenly dropped. A 7.62x39 round had dropped out of the sky and onto his foot, or should I say into his foot. He was ok but could have been a lot worse.

James

[Porcupine]

Surely these reports are false, the Libyan rebels are known to be excellent marksmen.

[Mike357]

I thought Mythbusters had this one "busted" or was it pistol rounds?

[Rifleman798]

Here Mike,

busted / plausible / confirmed

In the case of a bullet fired at a precisely vertical angle (something extremely difficult for a human being to duplicate), the bullet would tumble, lose its spin, and fall at a much slower speed due to terminal velocity and is therefore rendered less than lethal on impact. However, if a bullet is fired upward at a non-vertical angle (a far more probable possibility), it will maintain its spin and will reach a high enough speed to be lethal on impact. Because of this potentiality, firing a gun into the air is illegal in most states, and even in the states that it is legal, it is not recommended by the police. Also the MythBusters were able to identify two people who had been injured by falling bullets, one of them fatally injured. To date, this is the only myth to receive all three ratings at the same time.

Thats what the Mythbusters said. Im sure they tested the theory with paintballs due to health and safety issues!

[Robin128]

Im sure they tested the theory with paintballs due to health and safety issues!

[Southcape]

I thought that guy Einstein had this theory pegged a few years back.

[Dougan]

From t'internet:

When such a gun is fired straight up into the air, this is what happens:

The bullet leaves the gun at 3000 feet per second. There are two things now that slow the bullet down as it goes up. One is gravity - which slows the bullet 32 feet per second every second. If this were all that slowed it down, then after 10 seconds, the bullet would still be going (3000 - 320), or 2680 feet per second. This is not even close to the true velocity after 10 seconds, because air friction is slowing the bullet also. That friction is much greater while the bullet is going fast. In the first second, it may slow the bullet by 1000 feet per second. Then in the second second, maybe another 500, and then less and less, until finally, the gravitational slowing is more significant than the friction. The bullet will continue to slow down until it stops at the top.

Now let's talk about when the bullet heads back down:

The same two forces are present, but now the gravity part is speeding up the bullet - friction is still trying to slow it down. Gravity will be speeding up the bullet 32 feet per second every second, but friction will be increasing more and more as the bullet speeds up, and this friction will subtract from that 32. There is a certain velocity when the friction is equal to the gravity in the opposite direction. At this point, the frictional acceleration is 32 feet per second every second upward (or -32), while the gravitational acceleration is 32 feet per second every second downward (+32). From now on, the bullet will have no acceleration at all (32 - 32 = 0). When this happens, the velocity of the bullet is called its "terminal velocity." The bullet will continue at the same velocity until it hits the ground or some object.

This terminal velocity is different depending mostly on two things. 1. The density of the thing that is falling. 2. The shape of the thing that is falling. Bullets are very dense (usually lead), and they have a shape to allow relatively low friction. The terminal velocity of a feather may be only 2 feet per second because of its shape and density, but the terminal velocity of a bullet could be 300 or 400 feet per second. This could be about 300 miles per hour

[dromia]

Hatcher did some interesting work on this, its in his "Notebook".

[Chuck]

Either way I cannot help but think it would have been over quicker if they had fired at Ghadafi forces and not God. The news reports ammo being rushed urgentlyn to tripoli, where it is fired into the air..


A few incidents here where sky shots at weddings etc have hit people looking out of windows..or bounced back and hit the bride or groom! Now a jailable offence here.