Stratified shear instability in the cabbeling regime

Abstract

In temperate lakes, early springs typically lead to a weak thermal stratification involving water both above and below the temperature at which the density maximum occurs. This implies that mixing of two parcels with the same density, but different temperature, can lead to the creation of denser fluid: a phenomenon known as cabbeling. Here we document the nature of the three-dimensionalization of shear instability at moderate Reynolds number in the cabbeling regime of freshwater.