What is happening in “Turbulent Orb” and “Jovian Cloud Tops?
“Turbulent Orb” is a large sphere filled with a sudsy fluid. “Jovian Cloud Tops” is a shallow container filled with the same substance. As you spin the vessels the suds follow the flow patterns caused by the changing speed of the rotation. De- pending on the acceleration of the orb, laminar regions– where everything is parallel– appear and no mixing occurs. The laminar regions form bands, which follow the rotational direction of the orb. As the spin slows or changes, the fluid mixes and the bands break up into turbulent swirls, ripples, and waves. Turbulent flow is complex and chaotic and con- verts organized, laminar flow into smaller and smaller forms. Finally it dissipates the flow energy as heat.
