Where cold and warm air meet, our atmosphere churns with energy. From the turbulence of supercell thunderclouds to the immense electrical discharge of lightning, there’s much that’s breathtaking about stormy skies. Photographer Keep reading
Tag: shockwave
Galileo’s Descent
In December 1995, the Galileo probe made its dramatic descent into Jupiter’s atmosphere at a velocity of more than 47 km/s. In 30 seconds, it decelerated from Mach 50 to Mach 1, Keep reading
Champagne’s Shock Wave
The distinctive pop of opening a champagne bottle is more than the cork coming free. The sudden release of high-pressure gas creates a freezing jet that’s initially supersonic. It even creates a Mach disk, Keep reading
Cavitation Collapse
The collapse of a bubble underwater doesn’t seem like a very important matter, but when it happens near a solid surface, like part of a ship, it can be incredibly destructive. This Keep reading
Plasma Shock Waves
Solar flares and coronal mass ejections send out shock waves that reverberate through our solar system. But shock waves through plasma – the ionized, high-energy particles making up the solar wind – do Keep reading
Jets from Lasers
Laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) is an industrial printing technique where a laser pulse aimed at a thin layer of ink creates a tiny jet that deposits the ink on a surface. In Keep reading
Astrophysical Turbulence
Subsonic turbulence – like the random and chaotic motions of air and water in our everyday lives – is something we have only a limited understanding of. Our knowledge of Keep reading
Seeing Shock Waves
This week NASA released the first-ever image of shock waves interacting between two supersonic aircraft. It’s a stunning effort, requiring a cutting-edge version of a century-old photographic technique and perfect Keep reading
Noisy Jets
One major problem that has plagued supersonic aircraft is their noise. The Concorde – thus far the only supersonic commercial airliner – was plagued with noise complaints that ultimately restricted Keep reading
Ricequakes
Rockfill dams, sinkholes, ice shelves, and other geological features often consist of brittle, porous materials that are partially submerged. Over time, pressure and chemical reactions with the fluid around them Keep reading