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A simple wave is a region of a hyperbolic flow in which one Riemann invariant is constant throughout, leaving the other invariant to determine all fluid variables.

Two positive uniform ideal-gas states can be joined by one nontrivial rarefaction wave precisely when their specific entropy agrees, $p_L/{\rho }_L^{\gamma }=p_R/{\rho }_R^{\gamma }$, and for one $\sigma \in \{\pm 1\}$ they satisfy $u_R-u_L=2\sigma (c_R-c_L)/(\gamma -1)$ with $\sigma (c_R-c_L)>0$. These equations are the constant-entropy and Riemann invariant conditions of the self-similar ideal-gas rarefaction. They are sufficient because its affine $u,c$ profiles match the two states at ${\xi }_L=u_L+\sigma c_L$ and ${\xi }_R=u_R+\sigma c_R$, and ${\xi }_R>{\xi }_L$. The left family has $c_R<c_L$, while the right family has $c_R>c_L$. The inequality $u_R>u_L$ alone does not impose the two matching equalities.

For a smooth hyperbolic system $U_t+A(U)U_x=S(U)$, suppose $\nabla R$ is a left eigenvector of $A$ with eigenvalue $\lambda$. The chain rule gives $({\partial }_t+\lambda {\partial }_x)R=\nabla R\cdot S$. Hence the homogeneous invariant remains an exact Riemann invariant when its gradient annihilates the source. For $U=(u,v)$, $A=\left(\begin{array}{cc}v& u\\ u^{-3}& v\end{array}\right)$, $S=(-u^3,u)$ and $u>0$, the function $R=v-1/u$ has $\nabla R=(u^{-2},1)$, eigenvalue $v+1/u$, and $\nabla R\cdot S=0$. On its zero level, the other characteristic speed vanishes and $v_t=1/v$ along constant spatial positions. Source terms need not destroy every invariant.

In a prismatic triangular channel with wetted area proportional to $h^2$, the Riemann invariants are $u\pm 4c$, with $c^2=gh/2$. Releasing water initially at rest into a dry channel produces a rarefaction wave with $u+4c=4c_0$ and $x/t=u-c$. Hence $c=(4c_0-x/t)/5$, $u=4(c_0+x/t)/5$ and the displayed depth profile for $-c_{0}t<x<4c_{0}t$. The dry front advances at $4c_0$ before finite-reservoir or varying-channel effects become important.

For a rectangular channel with stationary width $b(x)$ and constant reduced gravity $g^{\prime }$, volume conservation and momentum conservation give $h_t+u{h}_x+h{u}_x=-hu{b}^{\prime }/b$ and $u_t+u{u}_x+g^{\prime }{h}_x=0$. With $c=\sqrt{g^{\prime }h}$ the characteristic curves have speeds $u\pm c$. The combinations $u\pm 2c$ obey the displayed compatibility equations; they are Riemann invariants only when the width source term vanishes.