Influence of velocity shear on the Rayleigh‐Taylor instability

P. N. Guzdar, P. Satyanarayana, J. D. Huba, S. L. Ossakow

doi:10.1029/gl009i005p00547

Influence of velocity shear on the Rayleigh‐Taylor instability

DOI Web Site Web Site 被引用文献1件

書誌事項

公開日: 1982-05

権利情報

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor

DOI

10.1029/gl009i005p00547

公開者: American Geophysical Union (AGU)

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説明

<jats:p>The influence of a transverse velocity shear on the Rayleigh‐Taylor instability is investigated. It is found that a sheared velocity flow can substantially reduce the growth rate of the Rayleigh‐Taylor instability in the short wavelength regime (i.e., <jats:italic>kL</jats:italic> > 1 where <jats:italic>L</jats:italic> is the scale length of the density inhomogeneity), and causes the growth rate to maximize at <jats:italic>kL</jats:italic> < 1.0. Applications of this result to ionospheric phenomena [equatorial spread <jats:italic>F</jats:italic> (ESF) and ionospheric plasma clouds] are discussed. In particular, the effect of shear could account for, at times, the 100’s of km modulation observed on the bottomside of the ESF ionosphere and the km scale size wavelengths observed in barium cloud prompt striation phenomena.</jats:p>