The 9/11 Forum

This appears to be the east side of WTC 1. What are the multiple "diagonal" structures seen in between the columns at the break where the facade is blackened and smoke is pouring out?

Why does this falling person look so dis proportioned?


http://radified.com/911/JPEGs/911_jump_03b.jpg

SanderO wrote:This appears to be the east side of WTC 1. What are the multiple "diagonal" structures seen in between the columns at the break where the facade is blackened and smoke is pouring out?

Talking about the soot lines? Makes for a weird illusion.

On the left side of the image there appears to be structures of some sort between and projecting out past the facade between/above each window. They look almost identical. On the right side there are another series of similar shapes? What are we seeing here?

Regions of soot, I believe. I know they look like real things but I think it's just the discoloration providing an illusion of relief looking like some kind of structural element coming out there.

I can't see that. But I can't propose anything else. Do we have this from another point of view?

The only reason I can see it is because I'm looking for it. I was fooled once when looking at the SW corner of WTC1, where the discoloration from escaping smoke caused the impression that a portion of the corner was punched in. This, of course, made no sense as nothing impacted there to push the perimeter in, and it wasn't bowing. On closer inspection, and after tracing the vertical perimeter lines down, it was apparent the misalignment of panels was an illusion.

I'll see if I can come up with something to peel the illusion away, but sick today. Back to bed.

Here's a slice of the picture:



And this is what it would look like if someone got out there and scrubbed off the soot deposits on the left three columns:

I can see that there is soot or black smoke, but I can see how the edge of the cladding seems to be not in line "through" these smudges.

Whatever it is these look like "things" projecting from the windows in front of the cladding.

And why would those bright non sooted identical shapes appear in the sooted areas. What an illusion!

My touch-up (I actually had a graphic artist* do it) may not preserve the perimeter lines correctly, but if you run vertical lines over the top you'll see the alignment is good.

Yes, there are bright areas within each soot region, why I don't know, but this is what makes the illusion complete.


*edit: a child graphic artist, before anyone gets too critical; still better than I could do

The visual tricks here are interesting because the soot mimics shadow and shadow defines volumes. Then when you have unsooted surfaces it also looks like "reflectance" which also is how volumes are defined. And all this right next to a low contrast area where the smoke kills shadow and reflectance. So the close proximity of these high, little and no contrast areas makes this appear three dimensional. Quite the illusion.

You see it now?

I can see an illusion but it seems to involve some brighter areas (white smoke or steam?) as well as sooty black smoke.

Yes, it does involve the brighter areas within and around the soot, but I think most of these are areas not discolored by soot, as opposed to smoke or steam being emitted. Note the extraordinary similarity in shape for the leftmost four bright areas in the picture above. All have roughly the same triangular-shaped top.