A new look at surface flow visualization to provide insight into complex fluid dynamic behavior

An experimental study focusing on the development of a new surface flow visualization technique and its application to supersonic flows around complex geometric configurations is reported. This technique has been applied to a three-dimensional rectangular cavity installed within the wall of a supersonic wind tunnel. The technique provides high-quality images of the complex steady-state flow behavior. Three vortical structures were observed and were closely intertwined within the cavity. The test was conducted at a Mach number of 2.00 and a Reynold´s number of 42.5 million per meter. The cavity width-to-depth ratio was 2:1