The Scruton number (Sc) is an important parameter for vortex-induced vibration (excitation) of structures, vibrations caused by rain or wind, dry inclined cable galloping, and wake galloping, the unstable airflow that forms around bridge cables and other cylindrically-structured buildings. It is named after Christopher "Kit" Scruton, a British industrial dynamics engineer.
It is defined by:
where
| || is the structural damping expressed by the logarithmic damping decrement, |- | || is the effective mass per unit length, |- | || is the density of the air, or liquid, |- | || is the characteristic width of the structure.
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