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Matsumoto & Hoshino 2004
Matsumoto, Y. and Hoshino, M. (2004). Onset of turbulence induced by a Kelvin-Helmholtz vortex. Geophysical Research Letters 31: doi: 10.1029/2003GL018195. issn: 0094-8276.

A two-dimensional MHD simulation of the Kelvin-Helmholtz (K-H) instability in a non-uniform density medium shows a strong development of turbulence through non-linear instabilities. The difference in density between the two media plays a crucial role on the fast turbulent mixing and transport. The onset of the turbulence is triggered not only by secondary K-H instability but also by Rayleigh-Taylor (R-T) instability at the density interface inside the normal K-H vortex, whose onset mechanisms are attributed to the centrifugal force of the rotating motion. The secondary R-T instability alters the macroscopic structure by transporting dense fluids to tenuous region, while the secondary K-H instability is just a seed for the turbulence. The onset mechanism and the formation of the broad mixing layer give a new understanding of the mixing process in a variety of geo- and astrophysical phenomena.

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Abstract

Keywords
Magnetospheric Physics, Solar wind/magnetosphere interactions, Space Plasma Physics, Nonlinear phenomena, Space Plasma Physics, Numerical simulation studies, Space Plasma Physics, Turbulence
Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
http://www.agu.org/journals/gl/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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