Polar ocean and atmosphere: large scale vortex dynamics

海洋和大气有一般的环流，但却有丰富的小得多的流场和密度场。我的总体研究目标是更好地理解控制构成地球海洋的分层和旋转流体行为的动力学过程。本研究将提高我们预测复杂非线性流体动力系统演化的能力。在下一个资助期内，我建议继续这项工作，以加深我们对海洋流动中大尺度和小尺度涡旋现象的理解。本建议的主要目的是研究极地β平面上的环流，该平面模拟极地海洋或大气中科里奥利参数的二次变化。特别关注的是射流、漩涡和罗斯比波的产生。该方法包括理论、数值模拟和实验室实验。在实验室中，我们采用了一种远程测量旋转流体压力、速度和涡量的新方法。我们称这项新技术为“测高成像测速”，因为它使用抛物流体表面作为牛顿望远镜来探测表面的小尺度扰动。该方法可以提供高分辨率的速度场，使室内实验可以达到或超过目前的三维数值模型对流动的详细绘制。使用这种方法的研究结果将对参与解决“自发不平衡”或“地球物理流体动力学中的射流和环状结构”的社区产生极大的兴趣，他们正在努力将非地转动力学纳入传统上被视为准地转理想化的海洋和大气。这种方法是新的，可以为加拿大提供最前沿的研究。

The oceans and atmosphere have general circulation, and yet are rich with flow fields and density fields of much smaller scale. My overall research objective is to better understand the dynamical processes that govern the behavior of the stratified and rotating fluids that comprise the Earth's oceans. This study will enhance our capability to predict the evolution of complex nonlinear fluid dynamical systems. During the next grant period I propose to continue this work in order to deepen our understanding of large and small-scale vortical phenomena in oceanic flows.The main objective of this proposal is to investigate circulations on a polar beta-plane which models the quadratic variation of the Coriolis parameter in the polar ocean or atmosphere. The particular focus is on the production of jet-like currents, vortices and Rossby waves. The approach includes theory, numerical simulations and laboratory experiments. In the laboratory we use a new method of remotely measuring pressure, velocity and vorticity in a rotating fluid. We call this new technique 'Altimetric Image Velocimetry', as it uses the parabolic fluid surface as a Newtonian telescope to detect small scale perturbations of the surface. This method can provide high resolution velocity field such that laboratory experiments equal or exceed current 3D numerical models in detailed rendering of the flow. The outcome of the research using this method will be of great interest for communities involved in addressing 'spontaneous imbalance' or 'jets and annular structures in geophysical fluid dynamics ' who are working to include non-geostrophic dynamics in what traditionally have been quasi-geostrophic idealizations of ocean and atmosphere. This method is new and can provide the cutting edge research here in Canada.