Supercomputer computation of unsteady flow past a circular cylinder.

The following videos show in detail how the flow becomes detached from a body's surface due to the rising pressure along the surface, and the resulting vortex shedding. The location where the flow separates changes with time. Governing equations were solved numerically using a supercomputer at the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS), Japan. All videos courtesy of Professor K. Kuwahara, ISAS.

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Details of unsteady boundary layer separation from a circular cylinder at
Reynolds number 10,000.

Moderate Resolution (1MB)
High Resolution (4.5MB)

Details of unsteady boundary layer separation from a circular cylinder at
Reynolds number 100,000.

Moderate Resolution (1.3MB)
High Resolution (4.3MB)

Vortex shedding as a result of boundary layer separation from a circular cylinder at Reynolds number 100,000.

Moderate Resolution (1.5MB)
High Resolution (5.8MB)