Lex Smits receives the 2020 Batchelor Prize in Fluid Mechanics and gives a wonderful lecture at the International Congress in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (ICTAM) Milano 2020+1. The award and community recognize Lex for:
“The Prize is awarded for Professor Smits’ seminal contributions to our understanding of the structure of wall turbulence at very large Reynolds and Mach numbers, especially through the design of innovative experiments and measurement devices, and also for pioneering work on bio-inspired propulsion and on drag reduction using modified surfaces. Some of his most influential contributions are concerned with the behaviour and scaling of wall turbulence at extreme conditions, most notably its asymptotic behaviour at high Reynolds numbers, as well as its response to perturbations, especially shock waves, and to changes in Mach number. In addition he has also inspired interest in biomimetic flows, including propulsion, energy harvesting and vortex dynamics, often with the practical objective of improving the efficiency of fluid-based systems.”