Some aspects of time-dependent motion of a stratified rotating fluid

Abstract

Time-dependent motion of a rotating stratified fluid is analyzed within the quasigeostrophic approximation. A few examples of mechanically driven flow are analyzed. It is found that the motion is characterized by the ratio B of the stability frequency and the Coriolis parameter. Thus the ratio of the horizontal and vertical characteristic scale is in general O(B). In particular the decay process caused by a horizontal boundary will penetrate a distance B⁻¹L into the fluid, L denoting the horizontal scale of the motion.