Rayleigh–Taylor instability
Imagine you have two liquids that don't mix, one is heavier than the other. You pour the heavy liquid on top of the lighter liquid in a glass. After a moment, you notice the heavy liquid is starting to form little fingers and is sinking down into the lighter liquid. This is kind of like what happens when Rayleigh-Taylor instability occurs.
Rayleigh-Taylor instability happens when there's a big difference in density between two liquids or gases that are touching each other. The heavier one wants to sink to the bottom and the lighter one wants to float to the top, but they can't do it smoothly like they would if they were in space. Instead, the denser one starts forming little fingers and bubbles that push through the lighter one, like a straw poking through a milkshake. It looks a bit like the stripes you see on zebra or tiger fur.
Scientists have studied Rayleigh-Taylor instability for a long time because it happens in lots of different environments, like the ocean and the atmosphere. They've even simulated it on computers to learn more about how it happens. Understanding this instability helps scientists predict what happens during things like hurricanes and supernova explosions in space.
Rayleigh-Taylor instability happens when there's a big difference in density between two liquids or gases that are touching each other. The heavier one wants to sink to the bottom and the lighter one wants to float to the top, but they can't do it smoothly like they would if they were in space. Instead, the denser one starts forming little fingers and bubbles that push through the lighter one, like a straw poking through a milkshake. It looks a bit like the stripes you see on zebra or tiger fur.
Scientists have studied Rayleigh-Taylor instability for a long time because it happens in lots of different environments, like the ocean and the atmosphere. They've even simulated it on computers to learn more about how it happens. Understanding this instability helps scientists predict what happens during things like hurricanes and supernova explosions in space.