Finite vertical windows: seeing only part of the picture in rotating turbulence

Abstract

We report high-resolution measurements of three-dimensional (3D) turbulence in a rapidly rotating fluid. By decomposing the velocity field into a vertically averaged component and a 3D residual, we show that each dominates distinct frequency ranges: the quasi-two-dimensional (2D) component at low frequencies and the 3D component at higher ones. This separation is not intrinsic to the flow but strongly depends on the finite vertical span of the measurements. As the vertical scan range increases, the apparent crossover between 2D- and 3D-dominated regimes shifts systematically, revealing that the commonly assumed partition is strongly shaped by measurement limits. These findings call into question the usage of the concept of a pure 2D manifold in the theoretical description of rotating turbulence, and highlight the need for frameworks that account for resolution-dependent parts of the flow and the coupling between wave-like and vortex-like motions.

This article is part of the theme issue ‘Anti-diffusive transport and layering: from sub-cellular to astrophysical scales’.