Characteristics of an unstably localized disturbance in a compressed boundary layer

Experiments have demonstrated 1] that the transition of streamline-type flow into turbulent flow in a boundary layer occurs as a result of the formation and development of turbulent spots apparently arising from small natural disturbances. A study of the nonlinear evolution and interaction of localized disturbances requires knowledge of their characteristics to a linear approximation 2]. In the current work, results are presented of calculations of such characteristics for the first two unstable modes in a supersonic boundary layer on a two-dimensional plate (M = 4.5, T_w = 4.44).Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, No. 1, pp. 50–53, January–February, 1976.