Modeling turbulence with the Navier-Stokes equations

Abstract

The Navier-Stokes differential equations describe the motion of fluids which are incompressible. The three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations misbehave very badly although they are relatively simple-looking. The solutions could wind up being extremely unstable even with nice, smooth, reasonably harmless initial conditions. A mathematical understanding of the outrageous behaviour of these equations would dramatically alter the field of fluid mechanics. This paper describes why the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations are not solvable, i.e., the equations cannot be used to model turbulence, which is a three-dimensional phenomenon. [The paper is published in an international journal.]