The Splash of a DropWorthington, A. M. (Arthur Mason)
Science
The Splash of a Drop
Worthington, A. M. (Arthur Mason)
Splashes
Figs. 6 and 7 show the crater falling in, but this did not always
happen, for the walls often closed over the hollow exactly as in Figs. 4
and 5 of Series IV. Meanwhile the long and nearly cylindrical portion
below breaks up into bubbles which rise quickly to the surface.
By increasing the fall to 5 feet we obtain the figures of Series IX. The
tube of Fig. 1 corresponds to the dome of Series IV. and V., and is not
only elevated to a surprising height, but is also in the act of cleaving
(the outline being approximately that of the unduloid of M. Plateau).
Figs. 2 and 3 show the bubble formed by the closing up of this tube,
weighed down in the centre as in Figs. 5 and 6 of Series V. Similar
results were obtained with other liquids, such as petroleum and alcohol.
It is easy to show in a very striking manner the paramount influence of
the condition of the solid surface. I have here a number of similar
marbles; this set has been well polished by rubbing with wash leather. I
drop them one by one through a space of about 1 foot into this deep,
wide, cylindrical glass vessel, lighted up by a lamp placed behind it.
You see each marble enters noiselessly and with hardly a visible trace
of splash. Now I pick them out and drop them in again (or to save
trouble, I drop in the place of these other wet ones), everything is
changed. You see how the air is carried to the very bottom of the
vessel, and you hear the "phloisbos" of the bubbles as they
rise to the surface and burst. These dry but rough marbles behave in
much the same way.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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