Editing Catastrophic failure

{{short description|Sudden and total failure from which recovery is impossible}}
{{morefootnotes|date=August 2023}}
A '''catastrophic failure''' is a sudden and total [[Material failure theory|failure]] from which recovery is impossible. Catastrophic failures often lead to [[Cascading failure|cascading systems failure]]. The term is most commonly used for [[structural failures]], but has often been extended to many other disciplines in which total and irrecoverable loss occurs, such as a [[head crash]] occurrence on a [[hard disk drive]].

For example, catastrophic failure can be observed in [[steam turbine#Two-flow rotors|steam turbine rotor]] failure, which can occur due to peak stress on the rotor; stress concentration increases up to a point at which it is excessive, leading ultimately to the failure of the disc.

In firearms, catastrophic failure usually refers to a rupture or disintegration of the barrel or receiver of the gun when firing it. Some possible causes of this are an [[out of battery|out-of-battery]] gun, an inadequate [[headspace (firearms)|headspace]], the use of incorrect ammunition, the use of ammunition with an incorrect [[propellant]] charge,<ref name="hendrick">{{cite book|author=Hal W. Hendrick|author2=Paul Paradis|author3=Richard J. Hornick|title=Human Factors Issues in Handgun Safety and Forensics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6xXxsyxVAm8C&pg=PA132|access-date=2014-02-24|year=2010|publisher=CRC Press|quote=Many firearms are destroyed and injuries sustained by home reloaders who make a mistake in estimating the correct powder charge.|page=132|isbn=978-1420062977}}</ref> a partially or fully obstructed barrel,<ref name="carter">{{cite book|editor=Gregg Lee Carter|title=Guns in American Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oD46JBOhMU0C&pg=PA255|access-date=2014-02-24|year=2012|publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |isbn=978-0-313-38670-1|page=255|quote=... and left the copper jacket lodged in the barrel, leading to a catastrophic failuer of the rifle when the next bullet fired hit the jacket remnants.}}</ref> or weakened metal in the barrel or receiver. A failure of this type, known colloquially as a "kaboom", or "kB" failure, can pose a threat not only to the user(s) but even many bystanders.

In chemical engineering, a reaction which undergoes [[thermal runaway]] can cause catastrophic failure.

It can be difficult to isolate the cause or causes of a catastrophic failure from other damage that occurred during the failure, [[forensic engineering]] and [[failure analysis]] are used to find and analyse these causes.

==Examples==
{{see also|Structural integrity and failure#Notable failures}}
[[Image:Original Tay Bridge before the 1879 collapse.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Original Tay Bridge from the north]]
[[Image:Tay bridge down.JPG|thumb|right|300px|Fallen Tay Bridge from the north]]
Examples of catastrophic failure of engineered structures include:
* The [[Tay Rail Bridge disaster]] of 1879, where the center {{convert|0.5|mi}} of the bridge was completely destroyed while a train was crossing in a storm. The bridge was inadequately designed and its replacement was built as a separate structure upstream of the old.
* The failure of the [[South Fork Dam]] in 1889 released 4.8&nbsp;billion US gallons (18&nbsp;billion litres) of water and killed over 2,200 people (popularly known as the [[Johnstown Flood]]).
* The collapse of the [[St. Francis Dam]] in 1928 released 12.4&nbsp;billion US gallons (47&nbsp;billion litres) of water, resulting in a death toll of nearly 600 people.
* The collapse of the first [[Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)|Tacoma Narrows Bridge of 1940]], where the main deck of the road bridge was totally destroyed by dynamic oscillations in a {{cvt|40|mph|kph}} wind.
* The [[De Havilland Comet#Comet disasters of 1954|De Havilland Comet disasters of 1954]], later determined to be structural failures due to greater [[Fatigue (material)|metal fatigue]] than anticipated at the corners of windows.
* The 62 [[Banqiao Dam]]s failure event in China in 1975, due to [[Typhoon Nina (1975)|Typhoon Nina]]. Approximately 86,000 people died from flooding and another 145,000 died from subsequent diseases, a total of 231,000 deaths.
* The [[Hyatt Regency walkway collapse]] of 1981, where a suspended walkway in a hotel lobby in [[Kansas City, Missouri]], collapsed completely, killing over 100 people on and below the structure.
* The [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|Space Shuttle ''Challenger'' disaster]] of 1986, in which an O-ring of a rocket booster failed, causing the external fuel tank to break up and making the shuttle veer off course, subjecting it to aerodynamic forces beyond design tolerances; the entire crew of 7 and vehicle were lost.
* The [[Nuclear reactor technology|nuclear reactor]] at the [[Chernobyl nuclear power plant|Chernobyl power plant]], which [[Chernobyl disaster|exploded in April 26, 1986]] causing the release of a substantial amount of [[radioactive]] materials.
* The collapse of the [[Warsaw radio mast]] of 1991, which had up to that point held the title of [[world's tallest structure]].
* The [[Sampoong Department Store collapse]] of 1995, which happened due to structural weaknesses, killed 502 people and injured 937.
* The [[September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks]] and subsequent fire at the [[World Trade Center (1973-2001)|World Trade Center]] on September 11, 2001, weakened the floor [[joist]]s to the point of catastrophic failure.
* The [[STS-107|Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster]] of 2003, where damage to a wing during launch resulted in total loss upon re-entry.
* The collapse of the multi-span [[I-35W Mississippi River bridge]] on August 1, 2007.
* The collapse of the [[Mexico City Metro overpass collapse|Olivos-Tezonco Mexico City Metro overpass]] of 2021, which had structurally weakened over the years.

==See also==
*[[Dragon King Theory]]
*[[List of bridge disasters]]
*[[Progressive collapse]]
*[[Seismic performance]]
*[[Structural collapse]]
*[[Structural failure]]
*[[Mechanical resonance#Resonance disaster|Resonance disaster]]
*[[Risks to civilization, humans and planet Earth]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |author-link=Richard Feynman |first1=Richard |last1=Feynman |author-link2=Ralph Leighton |first2=Ralph |last2=Leighton |publisher=W. W. Norton |title=[[What Do You Care What Other People Think?]] |year=1988 |isbn=0-553-17334-0 }}
*{{cite book |first=Peter R. |last=Lewis |title=Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay: Reinvestigating the Tay Bridge Disaster of 1879 |publisher=Tempus |year=2004 |isbn=0-7524-3160-9 }}

[[Category:Building engineering]]
[[Category:Civil engineering]]
[[Category:Failure]]