Turbulence

Summary

Turbulence is the irregular, chaotic state of fluid motion that occurs at high Reynolds number. A turbulent flow has eddies over a wide range of sizes, and it mixes and dissipates energy far faster than a smooth flow. Its details are unpredictable, while its averages are reproducible. It is described by the Navier–Stokes equations, but no general theory derives its statistics from them. Most flows in nature and engineering, from rivers to jet engines, are turbulent.