Combustion is a remarkably complicated phenomenon fluid dynamically. The schlieren images above illustrate a couple of the variables that affect flame propagation. The top image shows an idealized, essentially spherical Keep reading
Month: September 2024
Studying Coughs
Bioaerosols–tiny airborne fluid droplets generated by coughing or sneezing–are a major concern for the spread of contagions like influenza. It may be possible, however, to mitigate some of these effects Keep reading
Hanging Liquids
A horizontal filament of viscous liquid hanging between two plates stretches under gravity. The photo above is a composite showing the stretching of a single thread over several time steps. Keep reading
Reader Question: Non-Coalescing Droplets
Reader ancientavian asks: I’ve often noticed that, when water splashes (especially as with raindrops or other forms of spray), often it appears that small droplets of water skitter off on Keep reading
Glinting Off Waves
Sunglint on the ocean surface can sometimes reveal different patterns in wave conditions. In the satellite photo above, we see the Canary Islands with wavering silvery wakes stretching to the Keep reading
Fluids Round-up – 23 June 2013
Time for another round-up! Here are the recent fluidsy links I’ve collected: A new study on Mars suggests that dry ice may be forming gullies in dunes in a fashion akin to the Leidenfrost Keep reading
Protruding Fingers
Instability is a common feature of fluid flows and can generate a near infinite set of patterns. The video above shows the Saffman-Taylor instability, an interface instability that occurs when Keep reading
The Colors of Soap
The brilliant and beautiful colors of a bubble are directly related the the thickness of the soap film surrounding it. When light shines on the soap film, some rays are reflected Keep reading
Stretching to Break
Have you ever wondered what happens inside a jet of fluid as it breaks into droplets? Such events are not commonly or readily measured. This video uses a double emulsion–in Keep reading
Meeting the Wall
Even something as simple as a falling sphere meeting a wall is composed of beautiful fluid motion. In Figure 1 above, we see side-view images of a sphere at low Keep reading