More Pictures of an Initial Separation

The next set of pictures are for double the gust speed. Or, they could be for the same speed, but for a cylinder with double the diameter. The evolution is similar as before, but more dramatic.

The asymmetry of these flows is due to small numerical perturbations in the computation, similar to the perturbations found in real life flows. Much current efforts focus on extending the mathematical analysis to allow for such unpredictable perturbations.

In the last fifty years, computational power has increased tremendously. Yet, even for a seemingly simple problem such as this, air flowing about a circular pole, computers by themselves have not increased our understanding. The main increases in understanding have come from theoretical investigations, greatly aided but so far never inspired by advanced computers. Unlike what many scientist think, computers are an addition to our analytical capabilities, not a replacement for it.

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