pathline
pathline — noun
1. the curved path that a single particle of liquid or gas follows as it moves thro
the curved path that a single particle of liquid or gas follows as it moves through space and time, often drawn or simulated in fluid dynamics to study how the flow behaves.
The engineer traced a pathline from the nozzle to see where each water particle went.
collocation: trace a pathline; traced [pathline] from [point] to [point]
In the simulation, each coloured dot follows its own pathline through the smoke plume.
collocation: follow(s) a pathline; pathline through [medium]
Karim traced pathlines on the weather map to track how the air parcel would travel.
Unlike a streamline, a pathline shows the route a single fluid particle takes over time.
- particle trajectory
broader term; used in mechanics and astronomy, not limited to fluids
用法筆記
Most often used in fluid dynamics and meteorology. Distinguish from streamline (instantaneous curve tangent to the velocity field) and streakline (positions of all particles that passed through a given point). A pathline is what a camera attached to the moving particle would record.