3D Kolmogorov flow

Turbulent flows can be understood as the superposition of a mean flow, which evolves slowly and is shaped by boundaries or forcing mechanisms, and a multitude of chaotic, short-lived fluctuations. This video shows the vorticity field of a three-dimensional Kolmogorov flow on an aspect-ratio-three domain, obtained from a pseudo-spectral simulation. Planes show out-of-plane vorticity averaged over the normal direction, and the vorticity magnitude is volume-rendered. The flow exhibits a large-scale state consisting of two counter-rotating vortices, which themselves are the centers of small-scale activity, as illustrated by the volume rendering. Please see ​ for further details.