β -plane turbulence in a basin with no-slip boundaries

On a domain enclosed by no-slip boundaries, two-dimensional, geostrophic flows have been studied by numerical simulations of the Navier-Stokes equation with the β -plane approximation at intermediate Reynolds numbers and a range of values for β . The β effect causes a refinement of the flow structur...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physics of fluids (1994) 2006-02, Vol.18 (2), p.026603-026603-11
Main Authors: Kramer, W., van Buren, M. G., Clercx, H. J. H., van Heijst, G. J. F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Earth, ocean, space
Exact sciences and technology
External geophysics
Geophysics. Techniques, methods, instrumentation and models
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Summary:On a domain enclosed by no-slip boundaries, two-dimensional, geostrophic flows have been studied by numerical simulations of the Navier-Stokes equation with the β -plane approximation at intermediate Reynolds numbers and a range of values for β . The β effect causes a refinement of the flow structures, and the presence of basin modes has been revealed by means of frequency spectra. The presence and apparent stability of basin modes on a domain enclosed by no-slip boundaries is a rather surprising observation, because these modes are solutions of the inviscid flow equations on a bounded domain (with free-slip boundaries). To understand the persistence of these basin modes, the viscous boundary layers near the no-slip walls have been investigated. The mean flow in forced simulations shows a zonal band structure, much unlike the regular Fofonoff-like solution observed when free-slip boundary conditions are used.
ISSN:1070-6631
1089-7666
DOI:10.1063/1.2173285