For many engineering students, their first exposure to fluid dynamics comes in a heat transfer class. The typical focus in these classes is not on the underlying physics but on Keep reading
Category: Phenomena
The Naruto Whirlpools
Enormous whirlpools are not simply the work of overactive imaginations. There are several spots in the world, including Japan’s Naruto Strait, that regularly see these spectacular vortices. Naruto’s whirlpools are Keep reading
Aerosol Transport
NASA Goddard has produced another gorgeous visualization of how various aerosols move around our world. This visualization is constructed from data collected between August 2019 and January 2020, which means Keep reading
Colorful Tides
This false-color satellite image — the recent winner of NASA Earth Observatory’s Tournament Earth 2020 — shows sands and seaweed off the coast of the Bahamas. Ocean currents and tides Keep reading
Bioluminescence at the Beach
A bioluminescent phytoplankton bloom is causing a stir among California beachgoers. During the daytime, aggregations of Lingulodinium polyedra appear reddish-brown in color (think the classic ‘red tide’). But at night Keep reading
How COVID-19 Affects the Lungs
One of the best known COVID-19 symptoms of this pandemic is difficulty breathing, and while you’ve likely heard a lot about ventilators used to help patients get oxygen, you may Keep reading
Holding Pipes in Place
Newton’s 3rd law states that any action has an equal and opposite reaction. Often engineers use this to our advantage; the thrust from expelling propellants is what lifts our rockets Keep reading
Singing in the MRI
We rarely consider just how complex the process is when we speak or sing. Sound waves produced in our larynx are shifted and amplified by the geometry of our throats, Keep reading
Icy Swirls
Rafts of sea ice follow swirling eddies in this satellite image of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Just as with phytoplankton blooms and sediment, this thin sea ice can be Keep reading
Choosing Swimming Over Flight
When studying modern birds it quickly becomes apparent that they can either be good at swimming or at flying, but not at both. The characteristics that make wings good for Keep reading