Gravity Waves in a Horizontal Shear Flow. Part I: Growth Mechanisms in the Absence of Potential Vorticity Perturbations

2009 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 481-496 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolaos A. Bakas ◽  
Brian F. Farrell
Keyword(s):  
Shear Flow ◽  
Wave Packet ◽  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Static Stability ◽  
Horizontal Shear ◽  
Growth Mechanisms ◽  
Trapping Level ◽  
Energy Growth ◽  
Zonal Velocity ◽  
The Waves

Abstract Interaction of internal gravity waves with a horizontal shear flow in the absence of potential vorticity perturbations is investigated making use of closed-form solutions. Localized wave packet trajectories are obtained, the energy growth mechanisms occurring are identified, and the potential role of perturbation growth in wave breaking is assessed. Regarding meridional propagation, the wave packet motion is limited by turning levels where the waves are reflected and trapping levels where the waves stagnate. Regarding perturbation energy amplification, two growth mechanisms can be distinguished: growth due to advection of zonal velocity and growth due to downgradient Reynolds stresses. The three-dimensional perturbations producing optimal energy growth reveal that these two mechanisms produce large and robust amplification of zonal velocity and/or density and vertical velocity, potentially leading to shear or convective instability. For large static stability, amplification of density perturbations in conjunction with vertical orientation of the constant phase lines close to the trapping level potentially leads to a convective collapse of the wave packet near the trapping level, in agreement with existing direct numerical simulation studies. For lower static stability and for waves with phase lines oriented horizontally, growth due to advection of zonal velocity dominates, leading to rapid growth of streamwise streaks within the localized wave packet and potentially to shear instability.

scholarly journals Nonlinear Atmospheric Adjustment to Thermal Forcing

2005 ◽  
Vol 62 (12) ◽  
pp. 4253-4272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul F. Fanelli ◽  
Peter R. Bannon
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Potential Energy ◽  
Wave Packet ◽  
Potential Vorticity ◽  
Lamb Wave ◽  
Static Stability ◽  
Lapse Rate ◽  
Thermal Forcing ◽  
The Waves ◽  
Buoyancy Waves

Abstract A nonlinear, numerical model of a compressible atmosphere is used to simulate the hydrostatic and geostrophic adjustment to a localized prescribed heating applied over five minutes with a size characteristic of an isolated, deep, cumulus cloud. This thermal forcing generates both buoyancy waves and a horizontally propagating Lamb wave packet as well as a steady state rich in potential vorticity. The adjustments in three model atmospheres (an isothermal, a constant lapse rate, and one with a stratosphere) are studied. The Lamb wave packet and the two lowest-order buoyancy waves are relatively unaffected by nonlinearities but the higher-order modes and the steady state are. The heating generates a vertically stacked dipole of potential vorticity with a cyclonic perturbation below an anticyclonic perturbation. In contrast to the linear results, the nonlinear dipole is severely distorted by vertical and horizontal advections. In addition, the Lamb wave packet contains some weak positive perturbation potential vorticity. The energetics is examined using traditional and Eulerian available energetics. Traditional energetics consists of kinetic, internal, and potential energies. It is shown that the Lamb wave packet contains more total traditional energy than that input to the atmosphere by the heating. The traditional energy in the packet resides primarily in the form of internal energy and only secondarily in the form of potential energy. The passage of the Lamb wave packet produces an atmosphere that, overall, is cooler, less dense, and with less total traditional energy than the initial atmosphere. Eulerian available energetics consists of kinetic, available potential, and available elastic energies. The heating generates both available elastic and potential energy that is then converted into kinetic energy. Most of the available elastic energy projects onto the Lamb packet, while almost all of the available potential energy is associated with the buoyancy waves and the steady state. The effects of varying the spatial and temporal scale of the heating, while keeping the net heating the same, are examined. As the duration of the heating decreases, the amount of energy projected onto the waves increases. Increasing the size of the heating decreases the amount of energy projected onto the waves. The adjustment is kinetically more vigorous in the nonisothermal atmospheres because of the reduction in the base-state static stability. The presence of a stratosphere produces large anomalies at and above the tropopause that are linked to the vertical motions of the buoyancy wave field.

scholarly journals An Investigation of Spiral Gravity Waves Radiating from Tropical Cyclones Using a Linear, Nonhydrostatic Model

2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (5) ◽  
pp. 1733-1759
Author(s):  
David S. Nolan
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Static Stability ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Heat Sources ◽  
Pressure Oscillations ◽  
Nonhydrostatic Model ◽  
Tangential Wind ◽  
Aircraft Observations ◽  
The Waves

Abstract A recent study showed observational and numerical evidence for small-scale gravity waves that radiate outward from tropical cyclones. These waves are wrapped into tight spirals by the radial and vertical shears of the tangential wind field. Reexamination of the previously studied tropical cyclone simulations suggests that the dominant source for these waves are convective asymmetries rotating along the eyewall, modulated in intensity by the preferred convection region on the left side of the environmental wind shear vector. A linearized, nonhydrostatic model for perturbations to a balanced vortex is used to study the waves. Forcing the linear model with rotating and pulsing asymmetric heat sources generates radiating gravity waves with multiple vertical and horizontal structures. The pulsation of the rotating heat source generates two types of waves: fast, deep waves with larger radial wavelengths, and slower, secondary waves with shorter radial and vertical wavelengths. The deeper waves produce surface pressure oscillations that have time scales consistent with surface observations, whereas the shorter waves have little surface indication but produce oscillations in vertical velocity with shorter radial wavelengths that are consistent with aircraft observations. Convective forcing that is either not pulsing or not rotating produces gravity waves but they are not as similar to the observed or simulated waves. The effects of varying the intensity of the cyclone, the asymmetry of the forcing, and the static stability of the surrounding atmosphere are explored.

scholarly journals Long ring waves in a stratified fluid over a shear flow

2016 ◽  
Vol 794 ◽  
pp. 17-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karima R. Khusnutdinova ◽  
Xizheng Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Shear Flow ◽  
Type Equation ◽  
Stratified Fluid ◽  
Constant Current ◽  
Striking Difference ◽  
Horizontal Shear ◽  
Weakly Nonlinear ◽  
Piecewise Constant ◽  
Cartesian Geometry ◽  
The Waves

Oceanic waves registered by satellite observations often have curvilinear fronts and propagate over various currents. In this paper we study long linear and weakly nonlinear ring waves in a stratified fluid in the presence of a depth-dependent horizontal shear flow. It is shown that, despite the clashing geometries of the waves and the shear flow, there exists a linear modal decomposition (different from the known decomposition in Cartesian geometry), which can be used to describe distortion of the wavefronts of surface and internal waves, and systematically derive a $2+1$-dimensional cylindrical Korteweg–de Vries-type equation for the amplitudes of the waves. The general theory is applied to the case of the waves in a two-layer fluid with a piecewise-constant current, with an emphasis on the effect of the shear flow on the geometry of the wavefronts. The distortion of the wavefronts is described by the singular solution (envelope of the general solution) of the nonlinear first-order differential equation, constituting generalisation of the dispersion relation in this curvilinear geometry. There exists a striking difference in the shapes of the wavefronts of surface and interfacial waves propagating over the same shear flow.

scholarly journals No steady water waves of small amplitude are supported by a shear flow with a still free surface

2013 ◽  
Vol 717 ◽  
pp. 523-534 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir Kozlov ◽  
Nikolay Kuznetsov
Keyword(s):  
Free Surface ◽  
Shear Flow ◽  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Water Waves ◽  
Small Amplitude ◽  
Finite Depth ◽  
Coordinate Frame ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Horizontal Shear ◽  
Positive Coefficients

AbstractThe two-dimensional free-boundary problem describing steady gravity waves with vorticity on water of finite depth is considered. It is proved that no small-amplitude waves are supported by a horizontal shear flow whose free surface is still, that is, it is stagnant in a coordinate frame such that the flow is time-independent in it. The class of vorticity distributions for which such flows exist includes all positive constant distributions, as well as linear and quadratic ones with arbitrary positive coefficients.

scholarly journals Influence of the cloud-level neutral layer on the vertical propagation of topographically generated gravity waves on Venus

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takeru Yamada ◽  
Takeshi Imamura ◽  
Tetsuya Fukuhara ◽  
Makoto Taguchi
Keyword(s):  
Layer Thickness ◽  
Gravity Wave ◽  
Local Time ◽  
Gravity Waves ◽  
Analytical Approach ◽  
Wave Activity ◽  
Neutral Layer ◽  
Low Latitudes ◽  
Vertical Propagation ◽  
The Waves

AbstractThe reason for stationary gravity waves at Venus’ cloud top to appear mostly at low latitudes in the afternoon is not understood. Since a neutral layer exists in the lower part of the cloud layer, the waves should be affected by the neutral layer before reaching the cloud top. To what extent gravity waves can propagate vertically through the neutral layer has been unclear. To examine the possibility that the variation of the neutral layer thickness is responsible for the dependence of the gravity wave activity on the latitude and the local time, we investigated the sensitivity of the vertical propagation of gravity waves on the neutral layer thickness using a numerical model. The results showed that stationary gravity waves with zonal wavelengths longer than 1000 km can propagate to the cloud-top level without notable attenuation in the neutral layer with realistic thicknesses of 5–15 km. This suggests that the observed latitudinal and local time variation of the gravity wave activity should be attributed to processes below the cloud. An analytical approach also showed that gravity waves with horizontal wavelengths shorter than tens of kilometers would be strongly attenuated in the neutral layer; such waves should originate in the altitude region above the neutral layer.

A note on the instabilities of a horizontal shear flow with a free surface

2000 ◽  
Vol 406 ◽  
pp. 337-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. ENGEVIK
Keyword(s):  
Surface Tension ◽  
Free Surface ◽  
Shear Flow ◽  
Velocity Profile ◽  
Froude Number ◽  
The Other ◽  
Algebraic Equations ◽  
Horizontal Shear ◽  
Analytical Treatment ◽  
Unstable Region

The instabilities of a free surface shear flow are considered, with special emphasis on the shear flow with the velocity profile U* = U*0sech2 (by*). This velocity profile, which is found to model very well the shear flow in the wake of a hydrofoil, has been focused on in previous studies, for instance by Dimas & Triantyfallou who made a purely numerical investigation of this problem, and by Longuet-Higgins who simplified the problem by approximating the velocity profile with a piecewise-linear profile to make it amenable to an analytical treatment. However, none has so far recognized that this problem in fact has a very simple solution which can be found analytically; that is, the stability boundaries, i.e. the boundaries between the stable and the unstable regions in the wavenumber (k)–Froude number (F)-plane, are given by simple algebraic equations in k and F. This applies also when surface tension is included. With no surface tension present there exist two distinct regimes of unstable waves for all values of the Froude number F > 0. If 0 < F [Lt ] 1, then one of the regimes is given by 0 < k < (1 − F2/6), the other by F−2 < k < 9F−2, which is a very extended region on the k-axis. When F [Gt ] 1 there is one small unstable region close to k = 0, i.e. 0 < k < 9/(4F2), the other unstable region being (3/2)1/2F−1 < k < 2 + 27/(8F2). When surface tension is included there may be one, two or even three distinct regimes of unstable modes depending on the value of the Froude number. For small F there is only one instability region, for intermediate values of F there are two regimes of unstable modes, and when F is large enough there are three distinct instability regions.

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