Quarky Explores Tokyo
How can a tower dance through an earthquake?
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The story
The ground shakes in Tokyo and Quarky expects the Skytree to snap. Instead a huge central pillar sways out of step with the outer tower, pulling against the wobble like a friend holding your hand. This damper turns dangerous shaking into a gentle dance.
What you'll learn
- Earthquakes shake buildings back and forth, and stiff things crack.
- A damper is a heavy part that moves out of step to cancel the swaying.
- Skytree's centre pillar is inspired by ancient Japanese pagodas that survived quakes.
- Quarky takeaway: bending on purpose can be stronger than refusing to move.
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