MASS TRANSPORT IN THE WAKE OF A SUBMERGED SUBMARINE
Abstract
An experimental technique was developed to study mass transport in the wake of a submerged submarine. A radioactive tracer is dispensed from the keel of a moving submarine, and the wake is probed with a towed vertical array of scintillation counters that provides a cross-sectional view of the marked waters. Preliminary experiments done with the USS ALBACORE indicate little tendency for the marked waters to rise or fall. In addition, it appears that local turbulence induced by the ship's screws is a relatively minor factor in the spreading of the submarine wake, except for the initial few minutes. A horizontal coefficient of eddy diffusion was computed from the data and is seen to increase with time throughout the experiment, approaching an asymptotic value. On the basis of certain assumptions, the data yields asymptotic values for both the scale of turbulence and the intensity of turbulence. The latter quantity, in turn, was used to compute a radius of curvature due to Coriolis forces at the latitude of 30 deg. This value agrees with the asymptotic scale of turbulence to within 50 percent. It is therefore speculated that Coriolis forces may be a mechanism which tends to limit the scale of turbulence.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 06, 1961
- Accession Number
- AD0324079
Entities
People
- H. A. Miranda Jr.
- Howard Schimmel
- P. S. Rooney
Organizations
- Columbia University