What is Superfluidity?
{{expert-subject|date=January 2022}} Superfluidity is a [[state of matter]] where [[fluid]] or a [[liquid]] can act very strangely. Some of the things a superfluid can do are: *It can flow extremely easily. (How easily a liquid can flow is called its [[viscosity]].) In fact, it flows so easily that friction does not change the way it flows; it has zero viscosity. Because of this, it can actually flow out of a container, like a bowl, even when the bowl is not tipped so the liquid can spill out. *It stays still when its container is spun, instead of starting a whirlpool like when a sink full of water is drained. However, a whirlpool does form if the container is spun at and above a certain speed. So far, scientists have only been able to create superfluids at extremely cold temperatures. However, superfluids have quite a few uses in science today, like: * Superfluid [[Helium]] at nearly [[absolute zero]] -271.4 degrees [[Celsius]] [-456.2 degrees [[Fahrenheit]]] was used in a special [[satellite]] in 1983 to get information on [[infrared]] waves in space. * Superfluids can be used in [[gyroscope]]s, to help machines predict information about [[gravity]] movements that can't be picked up with regular instruments only. * One kind of superfluid was used to trap and slow down a beam of light from [[Speed of light| its normal speed]] of 670,600,000 mph (1,079,000,000 km/h) to only 38.03 mph (62.2 km/h) That means the beam of light was moving at .00000567104 % of its speed in a [[vacuum]], or 17 million times slower. There is also another state of matter called a ''supersolid'', although how they are formed is more complex. == Related pages == *[[Fluid mechanics]] *[[Superconductor]] {{States of matter}} {{Emerging technologies}} [[Category:Physics]]