Bursting of columnar structures in forced rotating turbulence

TL;DR

This paper investigates intermittent bursting of cyclonic columnar structures in forced rotating turbulence, revealing that these events are linked to energy transfer mechanisms and elliptical instabilities influenced by forcing scale.

Contribution

It uncovers the conditions under which bursting occurs, linking energy transfer, elliptical instability, and external rotation in rotating turbulence.

Findings

Bursting occurs only at small forcing wavenumber (k_f = [3, 4])

Bursting is associated with forward energy cascade, unlike typical inverse cascade

Elliptical instability and Crow instability trigger vortex bursting

Abstract

In this study, we report intermittent bursting of cyclonic columnar structures in direct numerical simulations of forced rotating turbulence in a three-dimensional (3D) periodic box. Columnar structure formation is associated with dominant inverse cascade of energy in addition to the typical forward cascade at large wavenumbers. The forcing is random and isotropic, applied in two distinct wavenumber bands (kf = [3, 4] and [6, 7]). Notably, bursting is observed only for small forcing wavenumber, kf = [3, 4] and not at kf = [6, 7], for the same rotation rate and initial conditions. These bursting events are associated with forward cascade of energy in contrast to the inverse cascade of rotating turbulence, as confirmed from the ring spectrum and time-series of modal kinetic energy of modes with kz = 2, 3. Identifying some of the triads involved in the energy transfer from modal analysis, we also calculate the mode-to-mode energy transfer. We find that, before the event, the circular cyclonic vortex becomes elliptical due to cyclone-anticyclone interactions leading to elliptical instability. We argue that energy transfer preceding the bursting events to modes with higher kz triggers the Crow instability. These instabilities ultimately lead to bursting of the columnar vortex, which subsequently forms again due to the external rotation. Our results portray a tug-of-war between the destabilizing effect of elliptical instability and the stabilizing effect of external rotation.