Blow-up solutions to 3D Euler are hydrodynamically unstable

Abstract: We study the interaction between the stability, and the propagation of regularity, for solutions to the incompressible 3D Euler equation. It is still unknown whether a solution with smooth initial data can develop a singularity in finite time. This article explains why the prediction of such a blow-up, via direct numerical experiments, is so difficult. It is described how, in such a scenario, the solution becomes unstable as time approaches the blow-up time.