New Integrals of Motion and Singularities in 2D Fluid Dynamics with Free Surface

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Sergey Dyachenko, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Fine Hall 322

We study the problem of 2D incompressible fluid dynamics with free surface, we assume
the the fluid is ideal and the flow is potential. Following the conformal mapping
technique we reformulate the problem to surface variables and demonstrate the existence
of previously undiscovered constants of motion associated with singularities in the
analytic continuation of conformal map and complex potential. In numerical simulations
we recover the analytic structure of the surface shape and observe simple poles and
branch point singularities of the square-root type. We use the Alpert-Greengard-Hagstrom
method to recover the location, type and magnitude of the singularities. We show how
the approach of square-root type singularities may be responsible for the breaking of
waves in the ocean, following the nonlinear stage of modulational instability.