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Rossby-wave turbulence in a rapidly rotating sphere
LGIT, Observatoire de Grenoble, Universit\'e Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France
Abstract. We use a quasi-geostrophic numerical model to study the turbulence of rotating flows in a sphere, with realistic Ekman friction and bulk viscous dissipation. The forcing is caused by the destabilization of an axisymmetric Stewartson shear layer, generated by differential rotation, resulting in a forcing at rather large scales.
The equilibrium regime is strongly anisotropic and inhomogeneous but exhibits a steep m-5 spectrum in the azimuthal (periodic) direction, at scales smaller than the injection scale. This spectrum has been proposed by Rhines for a Rossby wave turbulence. For some parameter range, we observe a turbulent flow dominated by a large scale vortex located in the shear layer, reminding us of the Great Red Spot of Jupiter.
Full Article (PDF, 1994 KB)
Citation: Schaeffer, N. and Cardin, P.: Rossby-wave turbulence in a rapidly rotating sphere, Nonlin. Processes Geophys., 12, 947-953, 2005. Bibtex EndNote Reference Manager
