New discovery upends an 80-year-old theory of turbulence | ScienceDaily
sciencedaily.com
Scientists just broke an 80-year-old law of fluid physics — by running turbulent energy backwards, upending the Kolmogorov cascade theory that underpins everything from weather models to jet engines.
Kolmogorov Turbulence TheoryEnergy CascadeFluid DynamicsChaos Theory
Theory Briefing
- Researchers reversed the direction of energy flow in turbulence, a feat deemed impossible under Kolmogorov's 1941 cascade theory.
- The Kolmogorov energy cascade assumes energy always flows from large to small scales — this experiment proves that flow can be flipped.
- Overturning this 80-year-old framework could reshape how scientists model weather, ocean currents, and aerodynamic systems.