Laminar and Turbulent Flow

Learning Intentions

  • To learn the difference between laminar and turbulent flow in fluids
  • To understand why turbulent air (or “turbulence”) is dangerous for planes

Media

Laminar flow (as opposed to turbulent) of a fluid occurs when the fluid flows in layers.

Laminar Flow (2:19)

Laminar Flow 2 (1:28)

There is a whole subreddit, /laminarflow, dedicated to videos of laminar flow.

Laminar fountain (not my video)
byu/chrisredditcommenter inlaminarflow

🔥 Lava flow spilling directly into the ocean
byu/ElectricTC3 inlaminarflow

Sink Umbrella
byu/DontWreckYosef inlaminarflow

Laminar flow is generally preferred to turbulent flow. When a plane flies through turbulent air, we say it is going through “turbulence”.

Scary Plane Turbulence Caught On Camera | In Flight Turbulence Compilation (Watch first 0:30 only)

Insane turbulence on Turkish Airlines TK 10 (watch first 0:30 only)

Severe Turbulence Injures 36 Passengers on Hawaiian Flight (watch first 1:10 only)

When they ask for people with medical training, people with doctorates (PhD) in math should not raise their hand.