2009/10/08 by Silas Alben, Alben, Silas
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Biomimetic flight and propulsion mechanisms #Evacuation and Crowd Dynamics #FOS: Physical sciences #Fluid Dynamics (physics.flu-dyn) #Fluid Dynamics Simulations and Interactions #physics.flu-dyn
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.0910.1497
APS DFD Gallery of Fluid Motion 2009
arxiv created 2009/10/08 · openalex publication_date 2009/10/08 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We present a fluid dynamics video showing simulations of flexible bodies flapping and falling in an inviscid fluid. Vortex sheets are shed from the trailing edges of the bodies according to the Kutta condition. For interacting flags, a sampling of synchronous and asynchronous states are shown. For falling flexible sheets, the basic behavior is a repeated series of accelerations to a critical speed at which the sheet buckles, and rapidly decelerates, shedding large vortices. Examples of persistent circling, quasi-periodic flapping, and more complex trajectories are shown.