Mechanical similitude and turbulence

This report deals with the theory of the vortex street which enables the reproduction of the mechanism of the form resistance with suitable approximation under stated conditions, although such a resistance is precluded in a fluid which is perfectly inviscid. Disregarding for the present the origination of the vortex, the stream attitude in the wake of the body may be described approximately correct by the representation of individual vortices, without transgressing the law governing the motion of such vortices in an ideal fluid. Another striking example is the theory of the induced drag of wings, which likewise shows the extent of applying the vortex equations without overstepping the bounds of the dynamics of ideal fluids.