Leander, firstly, thanks for the advice!
I am pretty certain I have the skills and knowledge to build a regular waterfall and pond, however what I was really after was after the 'Gossamer' effect, which is different to normal waterfalls in that it appears like a clean 'slate' of water, rather than a distorted movement like a water fall you would find in nature. So the info that I was really after was how this 'slate' effect is achieved. The website offers some information, but is still vague in how the effect is done.
Quote:
From the 4physics website: The thin sheet-like configuration of water flowing over the Gossamer FallsŪ waterfall is maintained by adhesive forces acting between the water and the two guide filaments. In the absence of these guide filaments, surface tension would cause the water to converge into an approximate cylinder, or even globules, after falling from the spillway. The adhesive forces at the filaments prevent this so the water remains stretched into a sheet throughout its descent. The adhesive forces are assisted in their action by the design of the spillway which gives the departing water a sideward flow component.
The attachment of the water sheet to the filaments occurs over only a small part of the filament's circumference. That is, the filaments are not completely embedded within the sheet. This can be easily shown by running your finger lightly along the outer edge of a filament and observing that your finger remains dry. The thin layer of water, in this attachment region, that contacts the filament is called the boundary layer. The water is slowed in the boundary layers and flow disturbances within the boundary layers can cause detachment of the sheet from the filament, just as boundary separation can occur in the flow of air over an airplane wing.
The waves on the sheet of water consist of both large waves and small waves. The large waves originate in the action of the spillway on the departing water. The spillway forces excess water toward the edges and the acceleration of this excess water back toward the center results in the large waves that have an "X" like formation. The tiny wavelets emanate from the boundary layers along the filaments.
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