Resonant interactions in rotating homogeneous three-dimensional turbulence

Abstract

Direct numerical simulations of three-dimensional (3D) homogeneous turbulence under rapid rigid rotation are conducted to examine the predictions of resonant wave theory for both small Rossby number and large Reynolds number. The simulation results reveal that there is a clear inverse energy cascade to the large scales, as predicted by 2D Navier-Stokes equations for resonant interactions of slow modes. As the rotation rate increases, the vertically-averaged horizontal velocity field from 3D Navier-Stokes converges to the velocity field from 2D Navier-Stokes, as measured by the energy in their difference field. Likewise, the vertically-averaged vertical velocity from 3D Navier-Stokes converges to a solution of the 2D passive scalar equation. The energy flux directly into small wave numbers in the $k_z=0$ plane from non-resonant interactions decreases, while fast-mode energy concentrates closer to that plane. The simulations are consistent with an increasingly dominant role of resonant triads for more rapid rotation.