Interestingly creating more downforce from the rear wing with a smaller aspect ratio thereby increasing the tip vorticity and induced drag can be beneficial to a following car but thats for another article.

F1 rear wing vortices. The air moves at a higher velocity beneath the surface of the rear wing and at a lesser. For narrow aspect ratio f1 rear wings this it comes largely from induced drag created by wing tip vortices which are spiralling airflows created where the high pressure above the wing tip roll over into the lower pressure areas beside and below the wing tip. Short video showing vortices generated by an f1 rear wing.

However the race car world is somehow an inversion of aeronautical world whereby downforce and upwash is generated. In this second video on aerodynamics we look at when wings stall turbulence vortices different types of drag and controlling unwieldy air flow. In the current guise of the f1 technical regulations the greenyellow vortex stays more on the inside and raises significantly higher above the wing while the redblue one will be pushed further outside and lower following the edge of the endplate.

These thin white streams are nothing but vortices of air produced when the rear wing generates downforce. The rear wing vortex pair is also a large constituent of the aerodynamic wake which is ultimately also detrimental to a following car. These are the vapour trails seen on damps days curling from the wing tips.