Coupling Between Alfvén Wave and Kelvin–Helmholtz Waves in the Low Latitude Boundary Layer

The Kelvin–Helmholtz (KH) instability of magnetohydrodynamic surface waves at the low latitude boundary layer is examined using both an eigenfrequency analysis and a time-dependent wave simulation. The analysis includes the effects of sheared flow and Alfvén velocity gradient. When the magnetosheath flows are perpendicular to the ambient magnetic field direction, unstable KH waves that propagate obliquely to the sheared flow direction occur at the sheared flow surface when the Alfvén Mach number is higher than an instability threshold. Including a shear transition layer between the magnetosphere and magnetosheath leads to secondary KH waves (driven by the sheared flow) that are coupled to the resonant surface Alfvén wave. There are remarkable differences between the primary and the secondary KH waves, including wave frequency, the growth rate, and the ratio between the transverse and compressional components. The secondary KH wave energy is concentrated near the shear Alfvén wave frequency at the magnetosheath with a lower frequency than the primary KH waves. Although the growth rate of the secondary KH waves is lower than the primary KH waves, the threshold condition is lower, so it is expected that these types of waves will dominate at a lower Mach number. Because the transverse component of the secondary KH waves is stronger than that of the primary KH waves, more efficient wave energy transfer from the boundary layer to the inner magnetosphere is also predicted.

Experimental and Numerical Investigations on VIV Response of a Pipe in Shear Flow

The vortex induced vibration of slender cylindrical structures is common in offshore structures and marine applications such as risers, towing cables, etc. The VIV response of such slender elements in steady uniform current has been investigated in the past using numerical and experimental studies. Though few numerical studies exist for varying current (sheared flow), experimental studies are limited. Hence, the experimental studies are an essential part of VIV investigation, especially for sheared flow. The experiments were conducted using a specially fabricated circular steel tank of diameter 2.4 m with a central hinge to rotate the pipe horizontally in a water pool of depth 0.7 m. Shear current is simulated by rotating the pipe about the hinge. A pipe of diameter 25 mm (= D) and length 1 m (= L) was fixed at one end of the rotating cable support, and the other end was passed over a pulley inside a rotating cylinder. The rotating cylinder is provided with a pulley at the top to tension the pipe. A shear current with a maximum velocity of 1.3 m/s and a minimum velocity of 0.1 m/s is generated using the set up. The VIV response of the pipe was measured using electrical resistance-type strain gauges pasted along the length. The measured axial strain was used to obtain transverse displacements, which was used to determine the response frequency, amplitudes, and forces. The Strouhal number was calculated. The VIV response and the fluid force coefficients obtained from the experiments were compared with Shear7 results.

On magnetic helicity generation and transport in a nonlinear dynamo driven by a helical flow

The relationship between nonlinear large-scale dynamo action and the generation and transport of magnetic helicity is investigated at moderate values of the magnetic Reynolds number ( $Rm$ ). The model consists of a helically forced, sheared flow in a Cartesian domain. The boundary conditions are periodic in the horizontal and impenetrable for the vertical. The magnetic field is required to be vertical at the upper and lower boundaries. There are two consequences of this choice; one is that the magnetic helicity is not gauge invariant, the second is that fluxes of magnetic helicity are allowed in and out of the domain. We select the winding gauge, define all the contributions to the evolution of the helicity in this gauge and measure these contributions for various solutions of the dynamo equations. We vary $Rm$ and the shear strength, and find a rich landscape of dynamo solutions including travelling waves, pulsating waves and non-wave-like solutions. We find that, at the $Rm$ considered, the main contribution to the growth of magnetic helicity comes from processes throughout the volume of the fluid and that boundary terms respond by limiting the growth. We find that, in this magnetic Reynolds number regime, helicity conservation is not a strong constraint on large-scale dynamo action. We speculate on what may happen at higher $Rm$ .