Like humans, plants can spread pathogens to one another. Although scientists had observed correlations between rainfall and the spread of diseases among plants, this study is one of the first Keep reading
Month: March 2025
Kitchen Fluid Dynamics
The kitchen is a fantastic place to witness the everyday beauty of fluid dynamics. Daria Khoroshavina and Olga Kolesnikova capture these delectable cooking-related GIFs on their Buttery Planet Tumblr. From Keep reading
Get Your Own Space Coffee Cup
A few weeks ago, we reported on the espresso machine NASA and the ESA sent to astronauts aboard ISS. The Capillary Beverage Experiment, known colloquially as the “Space Coffee Cup”, is Keep reading
Coalescence Cascade
The simple coalescence of a drop with a pool is more complicated than the human eye can capture. Fortunately, we have high-speed cameras. Here a droplet coalesces by what is Keep reading
Re-lighting a Candle
When you blow out a candle, you can re-light the wick using the smoke trail left behind. This is a topic we’ve discussed before, but I’m thrilled to finally see Keep reading
3D Printing Fluids
Most flows vary in three spatial dimensions and time. In experimental fluid dynamics, the challenge is measuring as much of this information as possible. For those who use computational fluid Keep reading
Laser-Induced Fluorescence
One of the challenges of experimental fluid dynamics is capturing information about a flow that varies in three spatial dimensions and time. Experimentalists have developed many techniques over the years–some Keep reading
How Loud Can Sound Get?
Sound and acoustics often intersect with fluid dynamics. Most of the sounds we experience are pressure waves traveling through air. In this video, Joe of It’s Okay To Be Smart takes Keep reading
Extinguishing Fires With Sound
Engineering students from George Mason University have built a fire extinguisher that uses sound to put out flames. Since sound waves are mechanical pressure waves, they can move the air Keep reading
Soap Film Visualization
Soap films provide a simple and convenient method for flow visualization. Here an allen wrench swept upward through a soap film leaves a distinctive wake. This trail of counter-rotating vortices Keep reading