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AMATH 463Fluid Mechanics

Units
0.50
Faculty
Mathematics
Subject
Applied Mathematics

When it runs

  1. F24
  2. W25
  3. S25
  4. F25
  5. W26
  6. S26
  7. F26
  8. W27
  9. S27

Ran in 3 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

This course provides a broad mathematical introduction to fluid mechanics and provides a foundation for applications such as weather and climate, oceanography, aeronautics, and astrophysics. Topics in this course include the Euler and Navier-Stokes Equations; the dynamics of vorticity; the effects of viscosity, including near solid boundaries; wave motion and dispersive waves; the effects of the Earth's rotation on flow; and an introduction to turbulence.

Prerequisites

  • Complete all of the following
    • Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
      • AMATH231 - Calculus 4 (0.50)
      • MATH227 - Calculus 3 for Honours Physics (0.50)
    • Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
      • AMATH271 - Introduction to Theoretical Mechanics (0.50)
      • PHYS263 - Classical Mechanics and Special Relativity (0.50)
    • Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
      • AMATH353 - Partial Differential Equations 1 (0.50)
      • PHYS364 - Mathematical Physics 1 (0.50)

Antirequisites

None listed.

Leads to

No course lists it as a requisite.

Fall 2026 sections

Enrolment from UW Open Data, which can trail Quest by up to two days. Instructors and rooms: Schedule of Classes.
SectionClassEnrolledMeets
LEC 001596624 / 32TTh 13:00–14:20
TUT 101634224 / 32F 10:30–11:20

Resources

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Reviewed on UW Flow

80% liked it38% easy88% useful

From 5 ratings and 3 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • Just so much fun. I learned a lot and had fun doing it. Would highly recommend -- I took it without doing continuum mechanics first and it wasn't a problem at all.

    Dec 2025 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • The content is fairly heavy and forces you to make lots of simplifying assumptions that still give unsatisfying solutions. At the start it's hard to use intuition because there's so much math, but study enough and it will come. Waite gives a final project which you can choose to do on basically anything related to fluid mech. They also got rid of the continuum requirement (which I hadn't taken and I was fine). Overall good intro to the field and very interesting.

    Dec 2025 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Other than AMATH 361, this is the only course that really goes into the physics of fluids. Because of this, there is so much content that it is hard to have a *solid* understanding of anything. What we did cover was really interesting and required a solid understanding of a wide range of mathematics from Vector Calc, Linear Algebra, Complex Analysis, and Partial Differential Equations. Overall, my thoughts are that this course tried to teach too much and should be split into 2 courses. Be prepared to do a lot of work from assignments, projects, and both written and oral exams. That being said, if you are interested in this subject, you'll find this very interesting.

    Nov 2019 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

Discussed on r/uwaterloo

8 posts and comments in 7 threads mention AMATH 463, January 2012 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.

Fall 2024

What course teaches fluid dynamics for the MCAT? 2 points, 2 comments

“I'll just preface this by saying this is a purely hypothetical question (I am not a pre-med, otherwise why would I be in MathPhys to tank my GPA & have no electives?). …”

u/sheep_herder102: “I’m in MathPhys too, I think it’s very strange we get taught practically nothing about fluids. We have to wait till AMATH 361 and 463 to take these as electives.”

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Spring 2020

Water related courses and research 6 points, 7 comments

“I'm an undergrad planning student and I've realized that I'm really passionate about water and hydrology related studies (ex./ watershed management, looking at the relationship between water supplies …”

u/RusIsrCanShill: “Found exactly what you're looking for: https://uwaterloo.ca/applied-mathematics/current-undergraduates/continuum-and-fluid-mechanics-students/amath-463”

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Spring 2018

Fall 2017

PSA: UWCourseLinker back up, disabled by default, call with [[course code]] 39 points, 31 comments

u/RayDWatson: “Testing all course codes 1/61: [[ACC604]] [[ACC605]] [[ACC606]] [[ACC607]] [[ACC608]] [[ACC609]] [[ACC610]] [[ACC611]] [[ACC620]] [[ACC621]] [[ACC622]] [[ACC623]] [[ACC624]] [[ACC625]] [[ACC626]] …”

u/RayDWatson: “… [[AMATH444]] [[AMATH447]] [[AMATH451]] [[AMATH453]] [[AMATH455]] [[AMATH456]] [[AMATH463]] [[AMATH473]] [[AMATH475]] [[AMATH477]] [[AMATH495]] [[AMATH655]] [[AMATH663]] [[AMATH673]] [[AMATH675]] [[AMATH690]]”

u/UWCourseLinker: “… Differential Equations 2 AMATH 455 - Control Theory AMATH 456 - Calculus of Variations AMATH 463 - Fluid Mechanics AMATH 473 - Quantum Theory 2 AMATH 475 - Introduction to General Relativity AMATH 477 - Statistical Mechanics AMATH 495 - Reading Course AMATH 655 - Control Theory …”

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Any way to disable UWCourseLinker from posting? 16 points, 26 comments

“posting a reply to my comment I find the bot annoying.”

u/Jackhofmann: “PSYCH 483 PSYCH 484 PSYCH 485 PSYCH 486 PSYCH 490R PSYCH 499A PSYCH 499B PSYCH 499C PSYCH 621 PSYCH 630 PSYCH 677A PSYCH 704A PSYCH 704B PSYCH 707 PSYCH 710 PSYCH 714 PSYCH 717 PSYCH 720A PSYCH 721A …”

u/Jackhofmann: “… AMATH 271 AMATH 331 AMATH 342 AMATH 350 AMATH 351 AMATH 391 AMATH 442 AMATH 453 AMATH 456 AMATH 463 AMATH 473 AMATH 495 AMATH 663 AMATH 673 AMATH 731 AMATH 732 AMATH 740 AMATH 751 AMATH 871 AMATH 875 AMATH 900 ANTH 100 ANTH 100W ANTH 201 ANTH 202 ANTH 204 ANTH 222 ANTH 241 ANTH …”

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Winter 2012

What are the best AMATH 4xx courses? 5 points, 7 comments

“I need atleast three 4th year AMATH courses for my degree (although I might take more). So far the only one I've mostly decided on is General Relativity. What are the most interesting ones? …”

[deleted]: “… I took AMATH 473 (quantum theory 2) and AMATH 463 (fluid mechanics) last term, and I am currently taking AMATH 475 (general relativity) and AMATH 455 (control theory). What is your background? What degree are you pursuing, and what kind of courses do you have under your belt? …”

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Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

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