A Reevaluation of Two Dispersion Theories

Abstract

Three of the atmospheric datasets that were originally used to verity statistical dispersion theory are reevaluated. These datasets are described as well by transilient turbulence theory as by statistical theory over the range of time periods of interest for practical dispersion problems. The limitations of transilient turbulence theory, particularly its inability to duplicate the linear growth of plume-width standard deviation at infinitesimally short times, are also investigated.