Lab
Soap Film Catenoid
The catenoid is the minimal surface formed by a soap film stretched between two parallel rings. It is the only minimal surface of revolution besides the plane — every point has mean curvature exactly zero. Drag the rings apart and watch the surface stretch until it reaches the critical separation (about 1.33 times the diameter) where it snaps into two flat discs.
Mean curvature
H = 0
Minimal surface property
Separation / Diameter
0.50
Below critical (1.33)
Surface area
—
Relative units
Status
Stable
Film intact
Actions
Geometry
Ring radius
1.00
Ring separation
1.00
View
Mesh density
24
Longitudinal lines
16
Interaction
Drag on the canvas to rotate the view. Use the separation slider to pull the rings apart until the film snaps.