Nicole Sharp
@nicolesharp.com
Author, aerospace engineer, science communicator. Writes with excessive enthusiasm about fluid physics at FYFD.
The Macro room team is back with a video featuring their signature colorful cleverness. This time they're using a magnetic stirrer to swirl up some mesmerizing flows. It's well worth a watch.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25596
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25596
December 5, 2025 at 5:01 PM
The Macro room team is back with a video featuring their signature colorful cleverness. This time they're using a magnetic stirrer to swirl up some mesmerizing flows. It's well worth a watch.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25596
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25596
Stars about eight times more massive than our sun end their lives in supernovas, incredible explosions that rip the star apart. The earliest stages of this explosion are something we've never observed firsthand, until now.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25988
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25988
December 4, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Stars about eight times more massive than our sun end their lives in supernovas, incredible explosions that rip the star apart. The earliest stages of this explosion are something we've never observed firsthand, until now.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25988
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25988
Every time I fill a glass at my refrigerator, I watch how the falling jet creates a cloud of bubbles. The bubbles form when the impacting water jet pulls air in with it, though, as this video shows, the exact origins can vary.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23511
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23511
December 3, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Every time I fill a glass at my refrigerator, I watch how the falling jet creates a cloud of bubbles. The bubbles form when the impacting water jet pulls air in with it, though, as this video shows, the exact origins can vary.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23511
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23511
The Rayleigh-Taylor instability--typically marked by mushroom-shaped plumes--occurs when a dense fluid accelerates into a less dense one. But researchers have now demonstrated the effect at quantum scales, too.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25579
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25579
December 2, 2025 at 5:00 PM
The Rayleigh-Taylor instability--typically marked by mushroom-shaped plumes--occurs when a dense fluid accelerates into a less dense one. But researchers have now demonstrated the effect at quantum scales, too.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25579
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25579
Fresh snow shines white on the southern end of Greenland in this satellite image, taken in late February 2025. Whorls of sea ice sit off the coast, where they trace out patterns that reflect the winds and ocean currents of the region.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23624
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23624
December 1, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Fresh snow shines white on the southern end of Greenland in this satellite image, taken in late February 2025. Whorls of sea ice sit off the coast, where they trace out patterns that reflect the winds and ocean currents of the region.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23624
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=23624
It's difficult at times to fathom the scale and power of fluid dynamics beyond our day-to-day lives. Here, twists of the Sun's magnetic field propel a jet of plasma more than 500,000 kilometers out from its surface in an enormous solar prominence eruption.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25248
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25248
November 28, 2025 at 5:01 PM
It's difficult at times to fathom the scale and power of fluid dynamics beyond our day-to-day lives. Here, twists of the Sun's magnetic field propel a jet of plasma more than 500,000 kilometers out from its surface in an enormous solar prominence eruption.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25248
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25248
Photographer Ernie Button explores the stains left behind when various liquors evaporate. This one comes from a single malt scotch whisky by The Balvenie. The stain itself is made up of particles left behind when the alcohol and water in the whisky evaporate.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25500
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25500
November 27, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Photographer Ernie Button explores the stains left behind when various liquors evaporate. This one comes from a single malt scotch whisky by The Balvenie. The stain itself is made up of particles left behind when the alcohol and water in the whisky evaporate.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25500
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25500
When supercooled, water can remain a liquid even below its freezing point. As explained in this Minute Physics video, this happens because of a tug-of-war between effects in the water. #physics #science #supercooling
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24970
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24970
November 26, 2025 at 5:01 PM
When supercooled, water can remain a liquid even below its freezing point. As explained in this Minute Physics video, this happens because of a tug-of-war between effects in the water. #physics #science #supercooling
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24970
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24970
Taking a deep breath may actually help you breathe easier, according to a new study. When we inhale, air fills our alveoli--tiny balloon-like compartments within our lungs. To make alveoli easier to open, they're coated in a surfactant chemical produced by our lungs.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25444
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25444
November 25, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Taking a deep breath may actually help you breathe easier, according to a new study. When we inhale, air fills our alveoli--tiny balloon-like compartments within our lungs. To make alveoli easier to open, they're coated in a surfactant chemical produced by our lungs.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25444
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25444
Mushrooms have the challenging task of dispersing spores, typically from heights no more than a few centimeters above the ground. At that altitude, viscosity and friction with the ground mean that air barely moves, if it does at all.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25515
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25515
November 24, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Mushrooms have the challenging task of dispersing spores, typically from heights no more than a few centimeters above the ground. At that altitude, viscosity and friction with the ground mean that air barely moves, if it does at all.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25515
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25515
Winds from the north made for wild conditions at Nazaré in Portugal. Photographer Ben Thouard caught these crashing waves in the late afternoon, when the low sun angle illuminated the spray of the surf.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24942
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24942
November 21, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Winds from the north made for wild conditions at Nazaré in Portugal. Photographer Ben Thouard caught these crashing waves in the late afternoon, when the low sun angle illuminated the spray of the surf.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24942
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24942
Reposted by Nicole Sharp
To form planets, the dust and gas around a star has to start clumping up. While there are many theories as to how this could happen, it's a difficult process to observe. A recent study shows that a magnetorotational (MR) instability could do the job.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25337
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25337
November 20, 2025 at 5:01 PM
To form planets, the dust and gas around a star has to start clumping up. While there are many theories as to how this could happen, it's a difficult process to observe. A recent study shows that a magnetorotational (MR) instability could do the job.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25337
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25337
Reposted by Nicole Sharp
A craftsperson loves craft. Writing is craft. The people who practice it are into the process. People using AI don't have the SOUL of a craftsperson. They want an end result to stick their name on, that's it.
November 19, 2025 at 3:57 PM
A craftsperson loves craft. Writing is craft. The people who practice it are into the process. People using AI don't have the SOUL of a craftsperson. They want an end result to stick their name on, that's it.
At first glance, draining an ocean seems simple like a simple problem: just put a drain at the lowest point. But it's not quite that easy.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25151
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25151
November 19, 2025 at 5:01 PM
At first glance, draining an ocean seems simple like a simple problem: just put a drain at the lowest point. But it's not quite that easy.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25151
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25151
Even small changes to a meniscus can change how much wave energy passes through it. A new study systemically tests how meniscus size and shape affects the transmission of incoming waves.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25331
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25331
November 18, 2025 at 5:00 PM
Even small changes to a meniscus can change how much wave energy passes through it. A new study systemically tests how meniscus size and shape affects the transmission of incoming waves.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25331
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25331
We spend our lives dealing with fluids at a scale where the motion of individual molecules is beneath our notice. But once you are dealing with pipes that are small enough--below about 1 nanometer in diameter--fluids have to be considered molecule-by-molecule.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25349
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25349
November 17, 2025 at 5:01 PM
We spend our lives dealing with fluids at a scale where the motion of individual molecules is beneath our notice. But once you are dealing with pipes that are small enough--below about 1 nanometer in diameter--fluids have to be considered molecule-by-molecule.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25349
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25349
If you're used to seeing penguins on land, their speed and grace in the water can surprise. Penguins are even capable of extra bursts of speed through supercavitation.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24924
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24924
November 14, 2025 at 4:01 PM
If you're used to seeing penguins on land, their speed and grace in the water can surprise. Penguins are even capable of extra bursts of speed through supercavitation.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24924
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24924
Reposted by Nicole Sharp
Mathematicians recently built a “unified theory” of stalagmites, those dramatic spires that dot every subterranean landscape. 🧵
November 13, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Mathematicians recently built a “unified theory” of stalagmites, those dramatic spires that dot every subterranean landscape. 🧵
Onions are a well-known source of tears for many a cook. And while the chemical source of their power--onions release a chemical that reacts in our eyes to produce tears--has been known for years, no one has looked at the fluid dynamics in the process until now.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25438
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25438
November 13, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Onions are a well-known source of tears for many a cook. And while the chemical source of their power--onions release a chemical that reacts in our eyes to produce tears--has been known for years, no one has looked at the fluid dynamics in the process until now.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25438
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25438
For most of history, floating bridges have been temporary structures, often used by militaries crossing water, but over the course of the twentieth century, engineers learned to build more permanent floating bridges.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24831
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24831
November 12, 2025 at 4:00 PM
For most of history, floating bridges have been temporary structures, often used by militaries crossing water, but over the course of the twentieth century, engineers learned to build more permanent floating bridges.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24831
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=24831
As humanity pumps more carbon and heat into the atmosphere, the oceans--and particularly the Southern Ocean--have been absorbing both. A new study looks ahead at what the long-term consequences of that could be.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25431
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25431
November 11, 2025 at 4:01 PM
As humanity pumps more carbon and heat into the atmosphere, the oceans--and particularly the Southern Ocean--have been absorbing both. A new study looks ahead at what the long-term consequences of that could be.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25431
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25431
Reposted by Nicole Sharp
Are you a scientist?
Is your research cool?
Do people not adequately appreciate how cool your research is?
I'm looking for researchers to feature in Q&A-style interviews on my blog and would love to hear from (or about — embarrass your friends!) scientists interested in sharing their work. 🧪
Is your research cool?
Do people not adequately appreciate how cool your research is?
I'm looking for researchers to feature in Q&A-style interviews on my blog and would love to hear from (or about — embarrass your friends!) scientists interested in sharing their work. 🧪
November 10, 2025 at 11:37 AM
Are you a scientist?
Is your research cool?
Do people not adequately appreciate how cool your research is?
I'm looking for researchers to feature in Q&A-style interviews on my blog and would love to hear from (or about — embarrass your friends!) scientists interested in sharing their work. 🧪
Is your research cool?
Do people not adequately appreciate how cool your research is?
I'm looking for researchers to feature in Q&A-style interviews on my blog and would love to hear from (or about — embarrass your friends!) scientists interested in sharing their work. 🧪
Fluid dynamics often comes down to a competition between the different forces acting in a flow. Inertia, surface tension, viscosity, gravity, rotation -- flows can be affected by all of these and more.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25240
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25240
November 10, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Fluid dynamics often comes down to a competition between the different forces acting in a flow. Inertia, surface tension, viscosity, gravity, rotation -- flows can be affected by all of these and more.
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25240
fyfluiddynamics.com/?p=25240
This doesn't *quite* capture my current stage, but it resonates nevertheless.
It's a real trip figuring out how to manage an all-consuming project when absolutely nothing in your life allows you to sink yourself in one thing.
It's a real trip figuring out how to manage an all-consuming project when absolutely nothing in your life allows you to sink yourself in one thing.
November 9, 2025 at 1:44 PM
This doesn't *quite* capture my current stage, but it resonates nevertheless.
It's a real trip figuring out how to manage an all-consuming project when absolutely nothing in your life allows you to sink yourself in one thing.
It's a real trip figuring out how to manage an all-consuming project when absolutely nothing in your life allows you to sink yourself in one thing.