(N.Morgan) The longest echo was recorded in a WWII oil storage tank in Scotland. The impulse respnse was measured by 1/4″ measurement microphone and a starting pistol. Deep inside a complex of secret tunnels in the Highlands stirs a sound which will reverberate through the ages. The world record for the longest echo ever discovered has been shattered by a hidden network of oil storage tanks in Rossshire.
At 125 Hertz, a frequency typically made by a tuba, the reverberation time was 112 seconds. Even at the mid-frequencies important for speech, the reverberation time was 30 seconds. The broadband reverberation time, which considers all frequencies simultaneously, was 75 seconds – the figure certified as a world record by Guinness.
Inchindown’s six tanks were reportedly at full capacity during the Falklands War in 1982 but the depot was decommissioned and closed in 2002. Prof Cox said the tunnel’s extraordinary resonance could be incorporated into a musical composition, although the pipes are only accessible through limited guided tours.