The dynamics of rotating fluids was, in the main, developed by methods special to the field, using the equationsof motion of a fluid inarotatingframe of reference. It is, nevertheless, possible to derive all the leading results from the classical principles of fluid dynamics in non-rotating frames; specifically, from the rules governing rate of change of vorticity. Although writers on the subject have adopted this approach increasingly often in recent years, the author believes that a broad survey of the field, deriving results from those classical rules concerning vorticity, has not previously been given and may be of some interest to fluid dynamicists in general.

The present survey was read to the IUTAM Symposium on Rotating Fluid Systems at La Jolla, California, on 28 March 1966. It states briefly (§2) the rules governing rate of change of vorticity, and then applies them, first, to problems of steady relative motion of rotating fluids; in particular, of the atmosphere (§3), of rotating fluids in the laboratory (§4), and of the oceans (§5). Waves and wavy movements are then studied, first (§6) for systems with constant Coriolis parameter, including inertial waves, surface waves, ‘long waves’ and internal waves, and, secondly (§7)) for systems with variable Coriolis parameter, including Rossby-Haurwitz waves with and without the influence of tidal effects, as well as problems of barotropic and baroclinic instability. Vorticity principles are used as the sole theoretical tool throughout the survey.