Hydrodynamics of modulated finite-amplitude waves in dispersive media

Analytic approaches are developed for integrating the nondiagonalizable Whitham equations for the generation and propagation of nonlinear modulated finite-amplitude waves in dissipationless dispersive media. Natural matching conditions for these equations are stated in a general form analogous to the Gurevich-Pitaevskii conditions for the averaged Kortewegde Vries equations. Exact relationships between the hydrodynamic quantities on different sides of a dissipationless shock wave, an analog of the shock adiabat in ordinary dissipative hydrodynamics and first proposed on the basis of physical considerations by Gurevich and Meshcherkin,⁴ are obtained. The boundaries of a self similar, dissipationless shock wave are determined analytically as a function of the density jump. Some specific examples are considered.