EFM in the wild

2024 UW Engineering Discovery Days Lock Exchange Experiment

The Environmental Fluid Mechanics Group participated in the UW Engineering Discovery Days which has resumed for the first time since it was last held in 2019. During two days in Spring 2024, our group taught hundreds of 4th through 8th grade students how two bodies of water with different densities (fresh water and salt water) interact through a “lock exchange” experiment.

EFM Outreach at UW Engineering Discovery Days: Lock Exchange Experiment

The Environmental Fluid Mechanics Group holds an annual educational exhibit at the UW Engineering Discovery Days. In Spring 2019, our group taught hundreds of K-12 students about how water density impacts fluid motion in estuaries with the lock exchange experiment. Here is a link to our exhibit ‘how to’ guide and demo worksheet for those interested this outreach activity.