The shower - curtain effect in physics describes the phenomenon of how a shower curtain gets blown inward with a running shower. The problem of identifying the cause of this effect has been featured in Scientific American magazine, with several theories given to explain the phenomenon but no definite conclusion.
The shower - curtain effect may also be used to describe the observation how nearby phase front distortions of an optical wave are more severe than remote distortions of the same amplitude.
Hypotheses
Buoyancy hypothesis
Also called Chimney effect or Stack effect, observes that warm air (from the hot shower ) rises out over the shower curtain as cooler air (near the floor ) pushes in under the curtain to replace the rising air. By pushing the curtain in towards the shower, the (short range) vortex and Coandă effects become more significant. However, the shower - curtain effect persists when cold water is used, implying that this cannot be the only mechanism at work.See also Cooling tower.
Bernoulli effect hypothesis
The most popular explanation given for the shower - curtain effect is Bernoulli's principle. Bernoulli's principle states that an increase in velocity results in a decrease in pressure. This theory presumes that the water flowing out of a shower head causes the air through which the water moves to start flowing in the same direction as the water. This movement would be parallel to the plane of the shower curtain.
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