Packet of Hydroxyl Radical Molecules Hitting a Liquid Surface (IMAGE)
Caption
Molecular interactions between gases and liquids underpin much of our lives, but difficulties in measuring gas-liquid collisions have so far prevented the fundamental exploration of these processes. Researchers in the U.K. hope their new technique of enabling the visualization of gas molecules bouncing off a liquid surface will help climate scientists improve their predictive atmospheric models. The technique is described in The Journal of Chemical Physics. This image shows a packet of hydroxyl radical molecules hitting a liquid surface and creating a broad scattered plume, which is nearly identical for the two angles of approach, vertically or at 45 degrees.
Credit
Kenneth McKendrick
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