# gst: a floating vortex of fluff, the flight of the dandelion

<< A fluff-topped dandelion seed can float through the air for more than a kilometer before it drifts to the ground. In experiments last year, researchers revealed that the white filaments in the fluff-known collectively as a pappus-create a ring-shaped wake behind the seed that is associated with low pressure and acts to keep it aloft. >>

AA << have theoretically modeled the airflow around the pappus, reproducing the experimentally measured wake and showing that it provides the seed with steady flight capabilities. >>

Katherine Wright. Dandelion Fluff Perfected for Flight. July 2, 2019

https://physics.aps.org/synopsis-for/10.1103/PhysRevFluids.4.071901

Ledda PG, Siconolfi L, et al. Flow dynamics of a dandelion pappus: A linear stability approach. Phys. Rev. Fluids 4, 071901(R) July 2, 2019.

https://journals.aps.org/prfluids/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevFluids.4.071901