Elliptic model for space-time correlations in turbulent shear flows.

An elliptic model for space-time correlations in turbulent shear flows is proposed based on a second order approximation to the iso-correlation contours, while Taylor's hypothesis implies a first-order approximation. It is shown that the space-time correlations are mainly determined by their space correlations and the convection and sweeping velocities. This model accommodates two extreme cases: Taylor's hypothesis at vanishing sweeping velocity and the sweeping hypothesis at vanishing convection velocity. The result is supported by the data from the direct numerical simulation of turbulent channel flows.