GeoFlow: 3D numerical simulation of supercritical thermal convective states

Abstract

'GeoFlow' is a thermal convection experiment in rotating spherical shell geometry, which is going to take place in microgravity environment of International Space Station. We present numerical preliminary studies of the spherical Rayleigh-Bénard problem under an artificial central force field. Numerical simulation is done with a pseudospectral method. Special focus here is the simulation of flow states at selected parameter points of Rayleigh and Taylor number of a defined plan for experimental runs on ISS. One loop will contain thermal convection without rotation, i.e. rising temperature gradient between inner and outer sphere. Another loop investigates convection superimposed by rotation, i.e. fixing temperature gradient and then rising rotation rate. In such cases different transitions are expected to be observed. Just rising Rayleigh number shows different stable states depending on initial conditions. Fixing Rayleigh number and then rising up Taylor number leads to traverse of different convective states showing rich dynamics of the system.