How to Make a Hurricane on a Bubble

How do scientists mimic the physics of a hurricane on the surface of a bubble? What other types of crazy research are bubbles used for? Learn how to create colorful vortices on a bubble in your kitchen!

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RESOURCES

University of Bordeaux Experiment footage – CNRS

http://videotheque.cnrs.fr/video.php?urlaction=visualisation&method=QT&action=visu&id=4175&langue=EN

NASA Hurricane Footage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=Z3Z_WuY_434

ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yt6xI2p4kcU

http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/multimedia/video-view.cfm?Vid_ID=3102

NASA bubbles in Space

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXsvy2tBJlU

Paper on Hurricane Vortices:

http://www.nature.com/srep/2013/131213/srep03455/full/srep03455.html

Meuel, T., Xiong, Y. L., Fischer, P., Bruneau, C. H., Bessafi, M. and Kellay, H. Intensity of vortices: from soap bubbles to hurricanes. Scientific Reports 3, Article number: 3455 (2013).

Footage used with permission from Hamid Kellay.

Paper on Knotted Vortices:

http://www.nature.com/nphys/journal/v9/n4/full/nphys2560.html

Kleckner, D and Irvine, W. T. M. Creation and dynamics of knotted vortices. Nature Physics 9, 253–258 (2013)

Footage used with permission from Dustin Kleckner.

Paper on Popping Bubbles:

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/340/6133/720

R. I. Saye and J. A. Sethian, Multiscale Modeling of Membrane Rearrangement, Drainage, and Rupture in Evolving Foams, Science, 340(6133), 720–724 (2013).

Footage used with permission from James Sethian and Robert Saye

For suggestions on how to set up lighting for filming bubbles, check out ShanksFX video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODfj3Tw6oE4