Soap Bubbles May Help Predict Hurricane Paths

MSNBC ^ | 6/14/2012 | Andrea Mustain

[nickcarraway]

Vortex research could add to knowledge of small-scale variations in tropical cyclones

Although it's well-known that a tempest sometimes shows up in a teapot, it turns out that something smaller and far more ephemeral — a soap bubble — can also accommodate a squall. Such was the discovery of a group of physicists at the University of Bordeaux; when they heated hand-size soap bubbles, vortexes of color swirled into action and went dancing across the delicate orbs.

"Soon after we started seeing these things, we thought, 'Wow, that looks like a hurricane,'" said Hamid Kellay, a professor of physics at the French university.

An experiment was born. By studying the motions of the mini-soap storms, the group developed a mathematical model that can project, in part, the trajectory of a tropical cyclone — the umbrella term used to describe tropical storms and hurricanes. The research was published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

[Steely Tom]

Soap Bubbles May Help Predict Hurricane Paths

Yeah, I'll hold my breath till this happens.

[I see my hands]

"Sports scores coming up after these messages."

[Shadowstrike]

yippee! More of my hard earned tax dollars they can waste on “studies”.

Jesus wept...I’m so sick of this.

[bgill]

[CrazyIvan]

If Lawrence Welk flies by you at 200 MPH it might mean a hurricane.

[Bellflower]

Soap bubbles are basically uniform and the earth isn't. We have all kinds of vast variables that soap bubble don't, so I really cannot imagine that they could be much help in predicting hurricane patterns. Maybe some slight help in understanding them, but that, I would guess, would be about all. Likely this is another waste of our money, but a little bit interesting just the same.