Eddy cascade of instabilities and transition to turbulence

Numerical simulation is used to investigate a shear layer influenced by a constant external forcing in the theory of turbulence (Kolmogorov’s problem). The dynamics of flows developing in the case of various initial streamwise velocity profiles are studied. The transition from a two-dimensional laminar flow to a three-dimensional turbulent flow is considered. It is shown that developing hydrodynamic instabilities give rise to an eddy cascade, which, in the transition of the flow to a turbulent stage, corresponds to an eddy cascade developing in the energy and, then, inertial ranges.