PROCEEDINGS 

 SYMPOSIUM ON NAVAL HYDRODYNAMICS 



September 24-28, 1956 



FOREWORD 



There are few disciplines having the far-reaching and intimate consequences 

 in the whole spectrum of Navy operations, vehicles, and implements as does Hydro- 

 dynamics. Moreover, it is a contemporary characteristic of the field that the basic 

 physical and mathematical problems now recognized as the central ones are also among 

 the very ones faced by the designer of the modern Fleet and its myriad accouterments. 

 In recent years, we have seen a rapid exploitation of scientific and technological break- 

 throughs in the development of Fleet components and Naval strategic and tactical 

 concepts. It may be fairly stated that advances in Hydrodynamics have played a signifi- 

 cant part in the evolution of the new Navy; on the other hand, the need for intensifi- 

 cation of research in this discipline has been emphasized by the hydrodynamical prob- 

 lems which must be solved if the most effective Naval system compatible with the un- 

 precedented developments in other fields is to be provided. 



A result of the increasing importance of those aspects that have been character- 

 ized here as "Naval Hydrodynamics" — to highlight their significance in Naval applica- 

 tions — has been a continually growing need for meetings devoted exclusively to these 

 aspects. To meet this need, and as one of the ways of fulfilling its mission of insuring 

 maximum contribution of basic science to Naval effectiveness, the Office of Naval Re- 

 search has developed a series of symposia of which these Proceedings are the initial out- 

 come. This first "Symposium on Naval Hydrodynamics" differed in an important way 

 from the usual scientific meetings in that the papers were specifically intended to contain 

 critical surveys of various aspects of Hydrodynamics rather than the results of isolated 

 pieces of research. In recognition of the widespread scientific interest and basic nature 

 of the meeting, the National Academy of Sciences — National Research Council joined 

 with the Office of Naval Research in co-sponsoring the Symposium. 



In addition to the motivations mentioned above, there were several other ob- 

 jectives for the Symposium. In order to derive the greatest possible benefits for those 

 both in research and in design, we sought the following goals in the several contri- 

 butions: firstly, critical reviews and analyses of the status of each area including the 

 results of important recent researches; secondly, an interpretation, where appropriate, of 

 the significance of these results for future design applications; and, finally, guidance 

 for future research based on the authors' conclusions and opinions regarding the most 

 fruitful directions toward which future research might be oriented. The intimate role 

 of the foundational scientific aspects of the field in Naval and marine applications is 

 naturally revealed in the choice of topics finally selected for presentation. Thus, invi- 

 tations were issued for papers on the basic physical and mathematical aspects (turbu- 

 lence, cavitation, geophysical hydrodynamics) as well as more obviously applicatory 

 topics (ship motions, water-based aircraft research, underwater ballistics problems, 

 etc.). 



iii 



