Secondary instability of flow past a circular cylinder is examined using highly accurate numerical methods. The critical Reynolds number for this instability is found to be Rec=188.5. The secondary instability leads to three‐dimensionality with a spanwise wavelength at onset of 4 cylinder diameters. Three‐dimensional simulations show that this bifurcation is weakly subcritical.
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© 1996 American Institute of Physics.
1996
American Institute of Physics
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