We study symmetric vortex merger in quasi-geostrophic hows using numerical simulations with high vertical resolution. We analyse the effect of varying the vertical aspect ratio of the vortices and compare with the barotropic case. During the merging of potential vorticity cores with small aspect ratio, we observe the birth of secondary instabilities on the filaments. This is a new phenomenon not seen in baroclinic simulations having low vertical resolution. Passive Lagrangian tracers are used to explore the transport of fluid parcels during vortex merger, to provide a detailed view of the flow evolution, and to determine the value of the critical merging distance for baroclinic vortices.
Vortex merging in quasi-geostrophic flows / von Hardenberg, J; McWilliams, JC; Provenzale, A; Shchepetkin, A; Weiss, JB. - In: JOURNAL OF FLUID MECHANICS. - ISSN 0022-1120. - 412(2000), pp. 331-353.
Titolo: | Vortex merging in quasi-geostrophic flows |
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Data di pubblicazione: | 2000 |
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Digital Object Identifier (DOI): | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0022112000008442 |
Appare nelle tipologie: | 1.1 Articolo in rivista |
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http://hdl.handle.net/11583/2815034