Experimental study of the nonlinear saturation of the elliptical instability: inertial wave turbulence versus geostrophic turbulence.

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Title: Experimental study of the nonlinear saturation of the elliptical instability: inertial wave turbulence versus geostrophic turbulence.
Authors: Le Reun, Thomas1 (AUTHOR) lereun@irphe.univ-mrs.fr, Favier, Benjamin1 (AUTHOR), Le Bars, Michael1 (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Fluid Mechanics. 11/25/2019, Vol. 879, p296-326. 31p.
Subjects: Rotating fluid, Waves (Fluid mechanics), Turbulence, Rotational motion, Exponential functions
Abstract: In this paper, we present an experimental investigation of the turbulent saturation of the flow driven by the parametric resonance of inertial waves in a rotating fluid. In our set-up, a half-metre wide ellipsoid filled with water is brought to solid-body rotation, and then undergoes sustained harmonic modulation of its rotation rate. This triggers the exponential growth of a pair of inertial waves via a mechanism called the libration-driven elliptical instability. Once the saturation of this instability is reached, we observe a turbulent state for which energy is injected into the resonant inertial waves only. Depending on the amplitude of the rotation rate modulation, two different saturation states are observed. At large forcing amplitudes, the saturation flow mainly consists of a steady, geostrophic anticyclone. Its amplitude vanishes as the forcing amplitude is decreased while remaining above the threshold of the elliptical instability. Below this secondary transition, the saturation flow is a superposition of inertial waves which are in weakly nonlinear resonant interaction, a state that could asymptotically lead to inertial wave turbulence. In addition to being a first experimental observation of a wave-dominated saturation in unstable rotating flows, the present study is also an experimental confirmation of the model of Le Reun et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett. , vol. 119 (3), 2017, 034502) who introduced the possibility of these two turbulent regimes. The transition between these two regimes and their relevance to geophysical applications are finally discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Fluid Mechanics is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Label: Title
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  Data: Experimental study of the nonlinear saturation of the elliptical instability: inertial wave turbulence versus geostrophic turbulence.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Le+Reun%2C+Thomas%22">Le Reun, Thomas</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> lereun@irphe.univ-mrs.fr</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Favier%2C+Benjamin%22">Favier, Benjamin</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Le+Bars%2C+Michael%22">Le Bars, Michael</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Fluid+Mechanics%22">Journal of Fluid Mechanics</searchLink>. 11/25/2019, Vol. 879, p296-326. 31p.
– Name: Subject
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Rotating+fluid%22">Rotating fluid</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Waves+%28Fluid+mechanics%29%22">Waves (Fluid mechanics)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Turbulence%22">Turbulence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Rotational+motion%22">Rotational motion</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Exponential+functions%22">Exponential functions</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: In this paper, we present an experimental investigation of the turbulent saturation of the flow driven by the parametric resonance of inertial waves in a rotating fluid. In our set-up, a half-metre wide ellipsoid filled with water is brought to solid-body rotation, and then undergoes sustained harmonic modulation of its rotation rate. This triggers the exponential growth of a pair of inertial waves via a mechanism called the libration-driven elliptical instability. Once the saturation of this instability is reached, we observe a turbulent state for which energy is injected into the resonant inertial waves only. Depending on the amplitude of the rotation rate modulation, two different saturation states are observed. At large forcing amplitudes, the saturation flow mainly consists of a steady, geostrophic anticyclone. Its amplitude vanishes as the forcing amplitude is decreased while remaining above the threshold of the elliptical instability. Below this secondary transition, the saturation flow is a superposition of inertial waves which are in weakly nonlinear resonant interaction, a state that could asymptotically lead to inertial wave turbulence. In addition to being a first experimental observation of a wave-dominated saturation in unstable rotating flows, the present study is also an experimental confirmation of the model of Le Reun et al. (Phys. Rev. Lett. , vol. 119 (3), 2017, 034502) who introduced the possibility of these two turbulent regimes. The transition between these two regimes and their relevance to geophysical applications are finally discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Fluid Mechanics is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
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    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1017/jfm.2019.646
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 31
        StartPage: 296
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Rotating fluid
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Waves (Fluid mechanics)
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Turbulence
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Rotational motion
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Exponential functions
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Experimental study of the nonlinear saturation of the elliptical instability: inertial wave turbulence versus geostrophic turbulence.
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            NameFull: Le Reun, Thomas
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            NameFull: Favier, Benjamin
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            NameFull: Le Bars, Michael
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            – D: 25
              M: 11
              Text: 11/25/2019
              Type: published
              Y: 2019
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              Value: 879
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