| Abstract | In 2017, the NRC undertook biofuel contrail flight research, using Air Canada A320/A321 jet transport aircraft as the contrail generators. In measuring the full contrail cross-section, the NRC CT-133 research aircraft additionally measured the wake vortex characteristics of the aircraft types, Medium Category jet transports. The vortex cores tended to be large, compared to the wingspan, and thus more laterally proximate. Long-wave instability was relatively small wavelength. Short-wave mutual instabilities between vortices exhibited strong excitation of axial vortex velocity components. Cross-plane (orthogonal to the vortex axes) contour plots of vortex parameters, particularly quasi-vorticity, elucidated vortex structural detail. EDR contours were maxima at vortex core edges, some vortex cores were vented, core edges were warm, and core centres cool. Surprisingly perhaps the Brunt-Vaisala frequency contours exhibited stratified, rotating structures to the vortices, delineating Rossby-style spiral structures. |
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