Dr. Rabi Mehta uses smoke and lasers to inspect the flow pattern around an Adidas Brazuca football. (Credit: NASA)
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (NASA PR) — Fans across the globe have been cheering on their team during the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) 2014 World Cup tournament. These fans include NASA engineers, who used the lead-up to the tournament to test the aerodynamics of this year’s new ball design, developed by Adidas and dubbed the Brazuca ball.
Although NASA is not in the business of designing or testing balls, the tournament provides an opportunity to explain the concepts of aerodynamics to students and individuals less familiar with the fundamentals of aerodynamics.