TEXTURE & TECTONICS Olivia Rose Arcara ARC 550 FALL 2014 Natural Patterns and Biomimicry Structure & Organization Professor : Chris Ramano
Cloud Formation In meteorology, a cloud is a visible mass of liquid droplets or frozen crystals made of water or various chemicals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of a planetary body. • Cloud formation is the result of air in Earth’s atmosphere becoming saturated due to either or both of two processes: cooling of the air and adding water vapor. With sufficient saturation, precipitation will fall to the surface. • A cloud is a large collection of very tiny droplets of water or ice crystals. The droplets are so small and light that they can float in the air.
• All air contains water, but near the ground it is usually in the form of an invisible gas called water vapor. When warm air rises, it expands and cools. Cool air can’t hold as much water vapor as warm air, so some of the vapor condenses onto tiny pieces of dust that are floating in the air and forms a tiny droplet around each dust particle. When billions of these droplets come together they become a visible cloud. • A cloud is made up of liquid water droplets. A cloud forms when air is heated by the sun. As it rises, it slowly cools it reaches the saturation point and water condenses, forming a cloud. As long as the cloud and the air that its made of is warmer than the outside air around it floats.
Cirrus Filaments
Nimbostratus
Cirrostratus, Covering Whole Sky
Cirrocumulus
Thin Altostratus
Altocumulus
Fairweather Cumulus
Layer of Stratocumulus
Cumulonimbus
Precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation include: • Drizzle • Rain • Sleet • Snow • Graupel • Hail Precipitation
forms
as
smaller
droplets
coalesce via collision with other rain drops or ice crystals within a cloud. Approximately
505,000
cubic
kilometers
(121,000 cu mi) of water falls as precipitation each year; 398,000 cubic kilometers (95,000 cu mi) of it over the oceans and 107,000 cubic kilometers (26,000 cu mi) over land.
• Rain drops range in size from oblate,
The water cycle, describes the continuous
pancake-like shapes for larger drops, to
movement of water on, above and below the
small spheres for smaller drops.
surface of the Earth.
• The shape of rain drops depending upon their
size.
Coalescence
occurs
The water cycle involves the exchange of
when
energy, which leads to temperature changes.
water droplets fuse to create larger water
The mass of water on Earth remains fairly
droplets.
constant over time but the partitioning of the
• Unlike raindrops, snowflakes grow in a
water into the major reservoirs of ice, fresh
variety of different shapes and patterns,
water, saline water and atmospheric water
determined
is variable depending on a wide range of
by
the
temperature
and
humidity characteristics of the air the
climatic variables.
snowflake moves through on its way to the
The water moves by the physical processes
ground.
of evaporation, condensation, precipitation, require
infiltration, runoff, and subsurface flow. In
temperatures close to the ground to be
so doing, the water goes through different
near or below freezing, hail can occur
phases:
during much warmer temperature regimes
• Liquid
due to the process of its formation.
• Solid (ice)
• While
snow
and
ice
pellets
• Gas (vapor)
Molecular Precipitation Water as a chemical compound contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms that are connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at standard ambient temperature and pressure, but it often coexists on Earth with its solid state, ice; and gaseous state, steam (water vapor). • 0.001% of the Earth’s water is in the air as vapor, clouds (formed of solid and liquid water particles suspended in air), and precipitation • Pure water (H2O), seen in the top image, is an example of a compound: the ball-andstick model of the molecule (above) shows how water consists of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen
Graupel is precipitation that forms when supercooled droplets of water are collected and freeze on a falling snowflake, forming a 2–5 mm (0.079–0.197 in) ball of rime. • Contact between a snow crystal and the super-cooled droplets results in the freezing of liquid droplets onto a crystal which is a process known as accretion. • Crystals that exhibit frozen droplets on their surfaces are referred to as rimed. • When this process continues so that the shape of the original snow crystal is no longer identifiable, the resulting crystal is referred to as graupel. • Graupel forms fragile, oblong shapes and falls in place of typical snowflakes in wintry mix situations, often in concert with ice pellets. • Graupel is also fragile enough that it will typically fall apart when touched.
Clouds from Space Dense cloud formations can create long shadows that stretch for thousands of miles across the Earth’s surface as they eventually disappear into a black horizon. • Small altocumulus clouds frequently form in parallel rows or “cloud streets” in stable air conditions. • These cloud streets denote the prevailing wind direction, the cloud streets lying parallel with the wind. • Turbulent air lifted by the windward portions of the islands promotes cloud formation downwind.
• Islands or high land, elevated above the surroundings
and
interrupting
the
air
stream, can produce “tails” as well as “wakes.” • Shuttle
astronauts
have
frequently
observed Dek Island in Lake Tana in Ethiopia, the source of the Blue Nile, with a well-developed cloud tail. • This occurs when the land mass disrupts the air flow, creating downwind turbulence that promotes condensation. • These wispy rows of cloud or “cloud lanes” are recognized as a “landmark” by successive shuttle crews. This unique cloud formation off Oman is virtually constant at certain times of year. The clouds are created by a small vortex in the low level wind current.
• Like other cumuliform and stratocumuliform clouds, altocumulus signifies convection. It is usually white or grey, and often occurs in sheets or patches with wavy, rounded masses or rolls. • Altocumulus
is
also
commonly
found
between the warm and cold fronts in a depression, although this is often hidden by lower clouds. • Altocumulus may appear as parallel bands
Altocumulus Cloud
or rounded masses. • Typically a portion of an altocumulus cloud is shaded, a characteristic which makes
• Abbreviation Ac
them distinguishable from the high-level
• Genus Alto- (middle), -cumulus (heap)
cirrocumulus.
• Altitude 2,000–6,100 m(6,500–20,000 ft)
• Altocumulus
clouds
usually
form
by
• Classification Family B (Medium-level)
convection in an unstable layer aloft, which
• Appearance Similar to cirrocumulus, but
may result from the gradual lifting of air in
individual segments are larger and darker. • No Precipitation
advance of a cold front. • The presence of altocumulus clouds on
• (Alto, “medium”, cumulus, “heaped”) is a
a warm and humid summer morning is
middle-altitude cloud genus that belongs
commonly
to the stratocumuliform physical category
later in the day.
characterized
by
globular
masses
or
followed
by
thunderstorms
• Altocumulus clouds that appear on a
rolls in layers or patches, the individual
clear
elements being larger and darker than
thunderstorm will approach later in the
those of cirrocumulus and smaller than
day. The reason is altocumulus clouds
those of stratocumulus.
often precede cold fronts.
humid
morning
can
indicate
a
Mackerel Sky • Describes
a
altocumulus
sky
mostly
clouds.
It
covered is
rare
by with
altocumulus and extremely rare in its cirrocumulus form. • The occurrence of these clouds is an indicator of moisture and instability at intermediate levels (2400–6100 m, 800020,000 ft). • Rainshowers or thunderstorms may occur should any lower cumulus clouds reach the layer of the altocumulus form. • A disintegrating frontal system. The cloud was probably originally altostratus and has been broken up into altocumulus as the weather front disintegrates (usually as a result of encountering an area of high atmospheric pressure).
• Little, if any rain most often follows a
• A Mackerel sky can occur anywhere in
mackerel sky. Another common place
the world, Altocumulus clouds (Mackerel
that it is found is in the warm sector of a
clouds) usually form by convection in an
depression preceding the cold front and
unstable layer aloft, which may result from
associated showery weather, however
the gradual lifting of air in advance of a
usually here it is obscured by lower stratus
cold front.
clouds. • Mackerel skies are spoken of in the popular
• The presence of altocumulus clouds on a warm and humid summer morning is
bywords, “Mackerel in the sky, three days
commonly
dry,” “Mackerel sky, mackerel sky. Never
later in the day.
long wet and never long dry,” and the nautical weather rhyme, “Mare’s tails and mackerel scales / Make tall ships carry low sails.” • The phrase mackerel sky came from the fact that it looks similar to the markings of an adult king mackerel.
followed
by
thunderstorms
Little color varriance, perpective view
Sun distorting, perspective view
Perspecitive view, not a full bleed image
Not enough of the texture
Not a full bleed, perspective view
Not a full bleed pattern week texture
Too extreme of a color tone change
Perpsective view, uneven texture
Full bleed, even tone, good white contrast
Ice Molecules
Dust Particles
Ice Molecule attracting water molecules
Water Molecule
Liquid State
Ice Molecule
Solid State
Dust Particle
Attraction of H20 molecules
Water Droplet
Cloud Formation
Images of Graupel at the Molecular level
Riming • Once
a
small
ice
crystal
forms,
its
subsequent growth is determined by two mechanisms transfer of molecules from droplets into an ice crystal, and riming
Water molecule Aggregation water molecules Ice molecule
resulting from collisions with droplets during their fall through the atmosphere. • Since the pressure is higher over the droplet, water-vapor molecules diffuse toward neighboring ice crystals and they condense (deposit) from the vapor onto the ice crystal. • When the ice crystals attain a large-enough size, they fall and gain mass by colliding with some of the larger super-cooled droplets, which subsequently freeze onto the crystals in a second process called riming.
Attachment to Ribs
Ice Molecule
Ice molecules, snowflake fromation
Ice Molecule attracting water molecules
Water molecule
• Riming Process - Ice molecules attract water molecules to the edges of the rigid ice molecule which then start to
Aggregation water molecules Ice molecule
aggregate around the ice molecule and begin to envelop and surround encasing the molecule in a caccoon increasing the molecules desity. The newly increased mass causes the encased ice molecule to fall to earth as a new form of percipition.
Attachment to Ribs
• The water molecules are attracted to the ice molecule due to a change in the high and low perssure systems in the attmosphere. As the water molecules attract they begin to converge and encase the molecule increasing its mass and then gravity takes hold causing the newly formed graupel molecule to falls. Water molecules attached to a snowflake
Attraction of Water Molecules
Fully encased Ice molecule
Mass increases and the Grapel Falls
Water Molecules drawn to the ribs
Water Molecules Enveloping the Ice Molecule
Ice Molecule
Water Molecule Complete Enveloping of the Ice Molecule Converging Water Molecules
Final Choosen Texture for Cloud Analysis
Line work overlay to differentiate clouds
Black and White inverese texture
Color differentiating the sky from clouds
Black and white high contrast
Exploring the Horizontal nature of the texture
Pixelated breakdown texture
Analysis of tonal quaility
High Contrasted white vaule
A 4
2
3
C
1 B
C
2
A 1
B
4
3
C
2
A 1
B
4
3
Phase Change • Once
a
small
ice
crystal
forms,
7" its
subsequent growth is determined by two
2"
mechanisms transfer of molecules from droplets into an ice crystal, and riming resulting from collisions with droplets during their fall through the atmosphere. • The process that determines the basic crystal form occurs by direct transfer of
5"
water-vapor molecules from the supercooled water droplets in the cloud. • It has been determined experimentally and theoretically that the vapor pressure over the water droplet is higher than over the ice crystal at a given temperature.
6"
ICE
WATER
Irregular Grid • Overlaying the standardized pattern of the transitional phase change of clouds from Ice to water with the Irregular Grid derived from the chosen principle image of altocumulus clouds creates a fluxuation of densities within the standardized pattern.
C
2
A 1
B
4
3
Connection of midpoints to create pattern
Truncated Icosahedron • In geometry, the truncated icosahedron is an Archimedean solid, one of 13 convex isogonal non-prismatic solids whose faces are two or more types of regular polygons. • It has 12 regular pentagonal faces, 20 regular hexagonal faces, 60 vertices and 90 edges. • This geometry is associated with soccer balls
typically
patterned
with
white
hexagons and black pentagons. Geodesic domes are often based on this structure. And it also corresponds to the geometry of the “Bucky Ball” (Carbon-60, or C60) molecule.
Soccer Ball Unrolled, Unravelling of Surface
Modular Construction • The standardized pattern of the transitional phase change of clouds from Ice to water.
Variation of aggregated water molecules
The pattern was then standardized even further to accommodate the production
Fold Lines
Cut Lines
of a planar surface by connecting the midpoints of the water molecules that have
Void Space
aggregated around the ice molecules in the pattern. • The Dotted lines represent cut lines in the
Ice Molecule
modular construction process of the 3-D representation of the phase change. • The Thickest solid lines represent the folding lines in which the water molecules start to envelope around the ice molecules to create a spherical encasing.
Water Molecule
3-D construction • When the water molecules aggregate around the ice molecules small gaps occur in between the compression of the water molecules. In the 3-D model these gaps are derived from the same process Modual Connection of Water Molecules
creating a pentagon shape to differentiate the negative space, from mass of the water and ice molecules
Water Molecule Ice Molecule
Air space inbetween Water Molecules
31 2"
6"
31 2"
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13 4"
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13 4"
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Ice Molecule
Water Molecule
Air Space Inbetween Water Molecules
Geometry Analysis • The equilateral hexagons represent the Ice
Water Molecule
molecules, while the irregular hexagons are created from an aggregation of water
Air Space Inbetween Water Molecules
molecules surrounding the ice molecule. The voids within the water molecules represent the air gaps where the molecules converge. The irregular shaped pentagons that emerged from the folding process creates the air pockets derived from the original pattern of the aggregation of water molecules that envelop around the ice molecule.
Ice Molecule
Material Thickness • Adding
thickness
and
materiality
to
structure created a series of complex joints.
These are a few examples and
experiments in the jointing process. • 1st joint - The creation of a tabbed
Rotation of key
system, that would be slotted into
Perpendicular Connection
Full panel overlap
place. Full panel overlap
• 2nd joint - The creation of a full panel overlap system. The full panel overlap
Tabs
will be bolted into place and created a rigidized system. • 3rd joint - The creation of a full panel overlapped system, with the crucial element of adding the intersection of a third element. This intersection of a tab that is perpendicular to the overlapping plates creates a lock and key type joint where the key would be inserted at the diagonal of the overlapping plates and
Joint One: Tab and Bolt System
Joint Two: Full Panel Overlapp System
Full Panel Overlapp With Perpendicular Key
Modular Connection Lock and Key
rotated into place. • This connection creates the catalyst in which the modular start to aggregate to from the structure.
The keys become a
tabs in which the modules start to connect to each other.
Joint One: Tab and Bolt System
Joint Two: Full Panel Overlapp System
Joint Three: Lock and Key System
Full Panel Overlapp With Perpendicular Key
Modular Connection Lock and Key
Flexible Connection of Joints
Lock and Key Detail
Sigular Moudal
Perpendicular element experiment
Folding Process
• The red lines are the edges on which the panels join to create a single module.
• The process of creating a pattern and the
a full panel overlay, where the panels in
folding it into a three-dimensional object is a powerful symbol. The action of wrapping and enveloping relates to the formation of clouds, and how the fold and swirl around
intersection to allow for the aggregation and connection of other modules.
which the joints are connected fully overlap
• These tabs act as the keys which intersect
to create a more rigid connection with the
with the locks. The locks formed by the
maximum surface area.
overlapping panels makes a truss like
• The red panels are the full overlays to
each other in space.
4
attach to the module at main points of
• To connect these panels the joint detail of
action of directly taking the pattern and
• The black panels are the tabs which
create the fixed jointed connections.
unravels and falls apart loosing its form.
4
4
4
system. If the lock is removed the structure
5
6
5
6
5
6
5
6
1
7
1
7
1
7
1
7
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
Modular Unroll and Construction
Modual
Connection of Moduals
Reorientation of Moduals
Ice Molecule
Full Panel Overlap
Tab System Module Connection Air Space Inbetween Water Molecules
Water Molecule
Flexibile Connections • The cloud is a constantly changing and shifting form in nature. This unstable form has the ability to break apart and then come back together, forming new connections of a constant intersection and collision of matter.
To embody this movement and
flexibility of the cloud instead of making the form a rigidized structure, these two separate jointed systems start to embody the original movement of the cloud.
Slotted system allows Expansion and movement
Slotted Bolted Panel Overlap System
Two Part Lock Construction
Lock and Key Overlaping bolted panels
Multiple Joint Conncetions creating a moveable structure
6
Joint Connections • 1st joint - is a full overlapping panel system with rigides notched out to lock the panels into place. The key is a two part systems that intersects the lock from both sides and 7 then is bolted into place. The keys are part of a tab systems which is attached to the modulars allowing for module to module connections to create the aggregated cloud form. • 2nd joint - uses the Ice fullMolecule overlapping panel system as well with the addition of a slotted Full Panel Overlap
key that allows for the shifting and sliding of panels. This allows the form to move
Notched system for multiple directions of attachment and shift like the inspiration of the cloud, Water Molecules a flexible structure. creating
Modular Aggregation • When the water molecules aggregate around the ice molecules small gaps occur in between the compression of the Bolted Module Connections
water molecules. In the 3-D model these gaps are derived from the same process creating a pentagon shape to differentiate the negative space, from mass of the water and ice molecules Modual Unit
Modual Joint Conncetions
Tab System Module Connection Module Connection to Potential Adjoining Module
4
Slot system for allowing for expansion of shape
5
6
1
7
Bolted Connection
Full Panel Overlap
2
Ice Molecule
Single Module
Full Panel Overlap
Notched system for multiple directions of attachment
3
Water Molecules
Full Panel Overlap
Unrolled Single Modual Flexible Connections
Concept Diagram of Cloud Formation
Slotted Bolted Connections
Noteched Bolted Connection
Tabbed Lock and Key Connection