A vortex is a spinning mass of air, water, or another fluid, pulling things toward its center, like a whirlpool or tornado.
From Latin “vortex” or “vortēx,” meaning “whirlpool,” from “vertere,” meaning “to turn.” It has long described swirling, turning motion drawing things inward.
Vortices appear from your bathtub drain to galaxies in space—the same spinning pattern repeats at wildly different scales. Once a vortex forms, it can trap objects in its spin, which is why birds and planes avoid tornadoes at all costs.
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