. >> reporter: dr brian house runs "sustain" - short for: surge, structure, atmosphere interaction facilitywhy is it important to recreate the conditions in a chamber? >> there's a couple of things that we are keen to figure out. what causes hurricanes to intensify, to go from a cat 3 to a cat 5 in less than 24 hours, and is important not just for hurricanes, but climate change issues >> reporter: we were invited to see a full-speed demonstration. >> there's no computer model that gets to the physics of what's when the high wind is ripping the top off a wave. >> reporter: researchers want a better understanding of the transfer of heat from the ocean surface and sea spray to the atmosphere. what wind speeds are we at now? >> at the equivalent 80 miles per hour, category 1 storm. >> reporter: the house is battered and it's only category 1. >> the large waves and wind - that's what we are trying to capture. >> reporter: sensors track the force pushing against the structure. >> we need to understand how buildings can be resilient to these conditions. >> reporter: time to crank it up to full spe