Nonlinear effects for the Taylor column for a hemisphere Available to Purchase

When a flow is forced past an obstacle in a rapidly rotating fluid, a Taylor column forms. This is defined by a set of vertical detached shear layers circumscribing the obstacle which provide the smooth transition from an external inviscid potential flow to a stagnant core above the obstacle. For a hemispherical object, the main adjustment takes place in an external E^1/4 layer and an internal E^2/7 layer; here, the nonlinear flow in these layers is investigated. The problem in the E^1/4 layer is identical to a problem occurring in magnetohydrodynamic flow; in addition, some features of the magnetohydrodynamic problem have been resolved. Numerical solutions are obtained for the steady nonlinear external E^1/4 layer flow up to the point where unsteady flow separation from the Taylor column is imminent. The response of the internal E^2/7 layer to the flow in the E^1/4 layer is calculated and the results suggest the internal shear layer is unlikely to play any significant role in the separation process.