Perturbed Rankine vortices in surface quasi-geostrophic dynamics

Harvey, B. J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6510-8181 and Ambaum, M. H. P. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6824-8083 (2011) Perturbed Rankine vortices in surface quasi-geostrophic dynamics. Geophysical & Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics, 105 (4-5). pp. 377-391. ISSN 1029-0419 doi: 10.1080/03091921003694719

Abstract/Summary

An analytical dispersion relation is derived for linear perturbations to a Rankine vortex governed by surface quasi-geostrophic dynamics. Such a Rankine vortex is a circular region of uniform anomalous surface temperature evolving under quasi-geostrophic dynamics with uniform interior potential vorticity. The dispersion relation is analysed in detail and compared to the more familiar dispersion relation for a perturbed Rankine vortex governed by the Euler equations. The results are successfully verified against numerical simulations of the full equations. The dispersion relation is relevant to problems including wave propagation on surface temperature fronts and the stability of vortices in quasi-geostrophic turbulence.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/5762
Item Type	Article
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Science > School of Mathematical, Physical and Computational Sciences > Department of Meteorology
Uncontrolled Keywords	Surface quasi-geostrophic dynamics; Vortices; Temperature fronts; Linear waves
Publisher	Taylor & Francis Ltd
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