Squeezing Orange Microjets (VIDEO)
Caption
The video shows an orange, mandarin and lemon being squeezed and the microjets formed. Florida's orange is complex. Its hard outer layer protects the fruit, and a white spongy layer just below the skin has microscopic reservoirs of oil in hidden pockets. The spongy material absorbs impact, but when squeezed to a critical pressure it pushes up and tears open a minute section of the hard outer-layer to spray its fragrant stream. These microjets are small but fast, exiting their cavities at 22 mph on average by accelerating 5,000 Gs, which is equivalent to about 1,000 times the force astronauts feels at launch.
Credit
Dr. Andrew Dickerson's lab
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