scholarly journals Stable stratification promotes multiple zonal jets in a turbulent Jovian dynamo model

Icarus ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 114514
Author(s):  
T. Gastine ◽  
J. Wicht
Keyword(s):  
Stable Stratification ◽  
Dynamo Model ◽  
Zonal Jets

scholarly journals Polar and mid-latitude vortices and zonal flows on Jupiter and Saturn

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moritz Heimpel ◽  
Rakesh Yadav ◽  
Nick Featherstone ◽  
Jonathan Aurnou
Keyword(s):  
Outer Boundary ◽  
Zonal Flow ◽  
Stable Stratification ◽  
Return Flow ◽  
Jet Streams ◽  
Global Pattern ◽  
Zonal Flows ◽  
Zonal Jets ◽  
Divergent Flow ◽  
Cassini Mission

Abstract Zonal flow on Jupiter and Saturn consists of equatorial super–rotation and alternating East-West jet streams at higher latitudes. Interacting with these zonal flows, numerous vortices occur with various sizes and lifetimes. The Juno mission and Cassini’s grand finale have shown that the zonal jets of Jupiter and Saturn extend deeply into their molecular envelopes. On Jupiter, the vast majority of low and mid-latitude jovian vortices are anticyclonic, whereas cyclones appear at polar latitudes. Cassini mission observations revealed a similar pattern on Saturn; its North and South polar vortices are cyclonic, whereas anticyclones occur at mid-latitudes. We use the recently developed code Rayleigh to run high-resolution simulations of rotating convection in 3D spherical shells. Four model runs are presented that result in dynamical flows that are comparable to those on the giant planets. We confirm previous results, finding that deep convective turbulence can explain the structure of jets. However, the strength and depth of stable stratification, and the latitude, can modify jet morphologies and affect the formation and dynamics of vortices. Lower latitudes favour shallow anticyclonic vortices that form due to upward and divergent flow near the outer boundary. These anticyclones are typically shielded by cyclonic filaments associated with downwelling return flow. In contrast, a single polar cyclone, or clusters of cyclones form near the poles. All of our simulations have this global pattern; a strong preference for shallow anticyclones in the first anticyclonic shear zone away from the equatorial jet (corresponding to the region of the great red spot on Jupiter and Storm Alley on Saturn), cyclonic and anticyclonic vortices at higher mid-latitudes, and a deeply seated cyclone or cyclone clusters at each pole. Our results show that Juno and Cassini observations of cloud-level flow can be explained in terms of deep convective dynamics in the molecular envelopes of Jupiter and Saturn.

Solar Internal Rotation and Dynamo Waves: A Two-Dimensional Asymptotic Solution in the Convection Zone

2000 ◽  
Vol 179 ◽  
pp. 379-380
Author(s):  
Gaetano Belvedere ◽  
Kirill Kuzanyan ◽  
Dmitry Sokoloff
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Asymptotic Solution ◽  
Internal Rotation ◽  
Convection Zone ◽  
General Idea ◽  
Dynamo Model ◽  
Axially Symmetric ◽  
Dynamo Action ◽  
Regeneration Rate ◽  
Dynamo Waves

Extended abstractHere we outline how asymptotic models may contribute to the investigation of mean field dynamos applied to the solar convective zone. We calculate here a spatial 2-D structure of the mean magnetic field, adopting real profiles of the solar internal rotation (the Ω-effect) and an extended prescription of the turbulent α-effect. In our model assumptions we do not prescribe any meridional flow that might seriously affect the resulting generated magnetic fields. We do not assume apriori any region or layer as a preferred site for the dynamo action (such as the overshoot zone), but the location of the α- and Ω-effects results in the propagation of dynamo waves deep in the convection zone. We consider an axially symmetric magnetic field dynamo model in a differentially rotating spherical shell. The main assumption, when using asymptotic WKB methods, is that the absolute value of the dynamo number (regeneration rate) |D| is large, i.e., the spatial scale of the solution is small. Following the general idea of an asymptotic solution for dynamo waves (e.g., Kuzanyan & Sokoloff 1995), we search for a solution in the form of a power series with respect to the small parameter |D|–1/3(short wavelength scale). This solution is of the order of magnitude of exp(i|D|1/3S), where S is a scalar function of position.

scholarly journals An 84-μG Magnetic Field in a Galaxy at Z=0.692?

2008 ◽  
Vol 4 (S254) ◽  
pp. 95-96
Author(s):  
Arthur M. Wolfe ◽  
Regina A. Jorgenson ◽  
Timothy Robishaw ◽  
Carl Heiles ◽  
Jason X. Prochaska
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Magnetic Fields ◽  
Faraday Rotation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Dynamo Model ◽  
Magnetic Field Generation ◽  
Interstellar Gas ◽  
Splitting Technique ◽  
Average Value ◽  
The Magnetic Field

AbstractThe magnetic field pervading our Galaxy is a crucial constituent of the interstellar medium: it mediates the dynamics of interstellar clouds, the energy density of cosmic rays, and the formation of stars (Beck 2005). The field associated with ionized interstellar gas has been determined through observations of pulsars in our Galaxy. Radio-frequency measurements of pulse dispersion and the rotation of the plane of linear polarization, i.e., Faraday rotation, yield an average value B ≈ 3 μG (Han et al. 2006). The possible detection of Faraday rotation of linearly polarized photons emitted by high-redshift quasars (Kronberg et al. 2008) suggests similar magnetic fields are present in foreground galaxies with redshifts z > 1. As Faraday rotation alone, however, determines neither the magnitude nor the redshift of the magnetic field, the strength of galactic magnetic fields at redshifts z > 0 remains uncertain.Here we report a measurement of a magnetic field of B ≈ 84 μG in a galaxy at z =0.692, using the same Zeeman-splitting technique that revealed an average value of B = 6 μG in the neutral interstellar gas of our Galaxy (Heiles et al. 2004). This is unexpected, as the leading theory of magnetic field generation, the mean-field dynamo model, predicts large-scale magnetic fields to be weaker in the past, rather than stronger (Parker 1970).The full text of this paper was published in Nature (Wolfe et al. 2008).

scholarly journals The magnetic helicity density patterns from non-axisymmetric solar dynamo

2021 ◽  
Vol 87 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Valery V. Pipin
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Differential Rotation ◽  
Conservation Law ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Solar Dynamo ◽  
Magnetic Helicity ◽  
Dynamo Model ◽  
Density Distributions ◽  
Large Scale Magnetic Field ◽  
Helicity Conservation

We study the helicity density patterns which can result from the emerging bipolar regions. Using the relevant dynamo model and the magnetic helicity conservation law we find that the helicity density patterns around the bipolar regions depend on the configuration of the ambient large-scale magnetic field, and in general they show a quadrupole distribution. The position of this pattern relative to the equator can depend on the tilt of the bipolar region. We compute the time–latitude diagrams of the helicity density evolution. The longitudinally averaged effect of the bipolar regions shows two bands of sign for the density distributions in each hemisphere. Similar helicity density patterns are provided by the helicity density flux from the emerging bipolar regions subjected to surface differential rotation.

scholarly journals A Climatology of Nocturnal Low-Level Jets at Cabauw

2009 ◽  
Vol 48 (8) ◽  
pp. 1627-1642 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Baas ◽  
F. C. Bosveld ◽  
H. Klein Baltink ◽  
A. A. M. Holtslag
Keyword(s):  
Wind Speed ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Geostrophic Wind ◽  
Stable Stratification ◽  
Radiative Cooling ◽  
Inertial Oscillation ◽  
Stable Boundary Layers ◽  
Above Ground Level ◽  
Low Level ◽  
Low Level Jets

Abstract A climatology of nocturnal low-level jets (LLJs) is presented for the topographically flat measurement site at Cabauw, the Netherlands. LLJ characteristics are derived from a 7-yr half-hourly database of wind speed profiles, obtained from the 200-m mast and a wind profiler. Many LLJs at Cabauw originate from an inertial oscillation, which develops after sunset in a layer decoupled from the surface by stable stratification. The data are classified to different types of stable boundary layers by using the geostrophic wind speed and the isothermal net radiative cooling as classification parameters. For each of these classes, LLJ characteristics like frequency of occurrence, height above ground level, and the turning of the wind vector across the boundary layer are determined. It is found that LLJs occur in about 20% of the nights, are typically situated at 140–260 m above ground level, and have a speed of 6–10 m s−1. Development of a substantial LLJ is most likely to occur for moderate geostrophic forcing and a high radiative cooling. A comparison with the 40-yr ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-40) is added to illustrate how the results can be used to evaluate the performance of atmospheric models.

scholarly journals Radiating Instability of a Meridional Boundary Current

2008 ◽  
Vol 38 (10) ◽  
pp. 2294-2307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hristina G. Hristova ◽  
Joseph Pedlosky ◽  
Michael A. Spall
Keyword(s):  
Western Boundary ◽  
Far Field ◽  
Boundary Current ◽  
Important Conclusion ◽  
Western Boundary Currents ◽  
Horizontal Structure ◽  
Boundary Currents ◽  
Zonal Jets ◽  
Eastern Boundary ◽  
Eastern Boundary Current

Abstract A linear stability analysis of a meridional boundary current on the beta plane is presented. The boundary current is idealized as a constant-speed meridional jet adjacent to a semi-infinite motionless far field. The far-field region can be situated either on the eastern or the western side of the jet, representing a western or an eastern boundary current, respectively. It is found that when unstable, the meridional boundary current generates temporally growing propagating waves that transport energy away from the locally unstable region toward the neutral far field. This is the so-called radiating instability and is found in both barotropic and two-layer baroclinic configurations. A second but important conclusion concerns the differences in the stability properties of eastern and western boundary currents. An eastern boundary current supports a greater number of radiating modes over a wider range of meridional wavenumbers. It generates waves with amplitude envelopes that decay slowly with distance from the current. The radiating waves tend to have an asymmetrical horizontal structure—they are much longer in the zonal direction than in the meridional, a consequence of which is that unstable eastern boundary currents, unlike western boundary currents, have the potential to act as a source of zonal jets for the interior of the ocean.

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