Best of Web Fall 2023 – Jonathon Gruener

Vortex Rings

Best of Web Fall 2023 – Jonathon Gruener

This video, created by Destin Sandlin of Smarter Every Day, showcases the collision of two vortex rings of dye in water. Sandlin recreated an experiment originally conducted by T. T. Lim and T. B. Nickels but with much higher visual fidelity. I think that the visual of the two different colors of dye colliding and forming new rings is quite striking, especially against the white background. I also appreciate the dedication of Sandlin to design and build a controlled setup to conduct this experiment. I also think that this is a fascinating phenomenon because it is still unknown exactly how the smaller, orthogonal rings form.

This video was posted to the Smarter Every Day Youtube Channel, created by Destin Sandlin.

Original Paper: Lim, T., Nickels, T. Instability and reconnection in the head-on collision of two vortex rings. Nature 357, 225–227 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1038/357225a0

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11 Comments. Leave new

  • First Prize
    This is a really interesting video with the mix of flow visualization and vibrant colors.

    Reply
  • Venkata Ramana Murty Durvasula
    Sep 11, 2023 10:30

    Second Prize
    The video is visually appealing and the image captures it’s essence

    Reply
  • Ciaran Rochling
    Sep 11, 2023 09:54

    Second Prize!

    Smarter every day! We love to see it! Great selection. Destin always does an amazing job conveying the gravity and importance of his recent scientific interests. This is no exception! The artistic collision of two flows really exemplifies this.

    Well done!

    Reply
  • Michael Becerra
    Sep 10, 2023 20:17

    Third Prize

    I thought this experiment was really cool to watch, almost mesmerizing with how the colors clash and spread out. The setup to produce this effect was also interesting and made me want to somehow recreate it and test it with different fluids to see what would happen.

    Reply
  • Ben Clairday
    Sep 10, 2023 17:48

    Third Prize – Very fascinating video to show how colliding air flows interact with one another!

    Reply
  • Sam Lippincott
    Sep 10, 2023 11:57

    Third Prize
    For something so typical in terms of flow visualization as ink ink water, I love how they’ve taken it to the next level by incorporating collisions and cross-mixing. So much of flow seems to incorporate chaos theory so I think it’s very fun that some phenomena like the orthogonal rings are just unknown.

    Reply
  • Hannah DelGuercio
    Sep 9, 2023 16:19

    Second Prize.

    I liked watching the rings collide and then swirl away, it was very soothing. The contrast between the two colors was also striking and allowed me to appreciate how the different dyes flowed throughout the collision.

    Reply
  • Peter Jakubczak
    Sep 9, 2023 13:19

    Third prize.
    I think the aesthetics of the color is awesome. It is interesting to see the dye that’s leaking from the nozzle. You should try and do something similar for your get wet!

    Reply
  • Corey Murphey
    Sep 9, 2023 08:46

    First Prize
    This is a really cool representation of jet collisions. I love the colors, which really helped accentuate the formation of new rings and the resulting vortices. I think it is great that they used mostly primary colors — the colors help you see when the flows are mixed and when they are still distinct.

    Reply
  • Ari Matrajt Frid
    Sep 8, 2023 12:43

    Second Prize
    I think that image is very cool and it is also an extremely interesting flow phenomenon.

    Reply
  • Sierra Greeley
    Sep 8, 2023 12:33

    First Prize
    I really enjoy the colors used to show the flow of the dye in the water. I think that the use of color makes the video very visually appealing. I am interested in knowing more about the setup that is was built to run this experiment. I also think it is really cool that they can’t use any science to explain the small orthogonal rings.

    Reply

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