People stunned after learning plane oxygen masks aren't connected to an air tank at all

We've all been on a plane heading off on holiday or business, and heard the aircraft team talking through the safety protocol, including where the lifejackets are and the important oxygen masks descending from the ceiling.

Yet a TikTok has left people stunned as it turns out those plastic masks aren't hooked up to a giant oxygen generator hidden in the plane. Nope, there is not a huge oxygen tank that ensures all passengers and crew will be able to breathe in an emergency situation. In fact the science behind it is very different.

Watch the video here:

TikTok user @JoeSpinsTheGlobe has left viewers reeling as he explained that the oxygen instead comes via an 'oxygen generator'. In his video he explains how this space saving device is used on aircrafts because it can 'pack a lot of oxygen in a tiny space because the oxygen is stored as a solid in the form of sodium chlorate.'

Essentially, it can carry more oxygen than if there was a big tank being used by 200+ people on an airplane.

TikTok star Joe doesn't just leave it there though, he then explains exactly how the generator works and how clever it is. In his voiceover he explains: "When you pull the mask down, a firing pin goes off and ignites the primer, which heats up to over 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Under this extreme heat, sodium chlorate decomposes into mostly oxygen gas and table salt. The oxygen passes through a filter and down the tubing to your mask, where you breathe it in."

Viewers have been left stunned by Joe's explanation, with many commenting that they had never considered the science behind it.

One commented: "How have I never even thought about where the oxygen would come from. I just accepted it would be there and work??"

Another wrote: "Did not know this. My 11yr old nephew & I learned something new today. Thank you."

A third commented: "I HAVE ALWAYS WONDERED THIS".

A flight attendant also commented on the video as they shared the view from cabin crew, as they wrote: "As a flight attendant, we are taught it is really important to let passengers know that they need to PULL DOWN on the mask to start the flow of oxygen."

This hasn't been the only travel revelation on TikTok, as one pilot went viral on TikTok last year after responding to a statistic that said that 46 percent of pilots admit to falling asleep while flying. The pilot, who goes by the name of @pilot_geeza on TikTok, surprised many followers after revealing the truth behind whether pilots fall asleep while they are in the air.

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