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Similarity of Stably Stratified Geophysical Flows

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Aviation Turbulence

Abstract

The article reviews the gradient-based similarity theory of shear-dominated, stably-stratified turbulent flows. The gradient-based similarity scales are classified as explicit or implicit. The explicit scaling employs the length scale as a specified function of height. Within the implicit type, the mixing length is locally related to various moments of turbulence. The analytical form of the explicit similarity functions of the Richardson number Ri is obtained based on experimental data collected in the atmospheric surface layer. The implicit similarity functions can be derived by renormalization of the explicit-type expressions. Since the implicit scales and similarity functions are not directly dependent on height, they are expected to be universally valid in shear-driven, stably-strafified turbulent flows, in the atmospheric boundary layer and in the upper atmosphere.

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Acknowledgment

This work was partially supported within statutory activities No 3841/E-41/S/2015 of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Poland and the US National Science Foundation grant AGS-1500900.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Geophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland

    Zbigniew Sorbjan

  2. Department of Physics, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, 53201-1881, USA

    Zbigniew Sorbjan

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  1. Zbigniew Sorbjan
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Correspondence to Zbigniew Sorbjan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Research, National Center for Atmospheric, Boulder, Colorado, USA

    Robert Sharman

  2. School of Earth Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Todd Lane

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Sorbjan, Z. (2016). Similarity of Stably Stratified Geophysical Flows. In: Sharman, R., Lane, T. (eds) Aviation Turbulence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23630-8_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23630-8_21

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