Convective Instabilities

Many complex natural patterns result from the interplay of two or more competing processes. For instance, gradients in temperature or composition each can drive simple convection in fluid suspensions. When juxtaposed, however, they produce multiple corotating rolls in well-defined patterns. Jennifer Curtis investigates the instabilities responsible for the onset of such dynamical structures, and relates them to analogous stratification-inducing processes in late-stage stars and tropical oceans. (This is part of the Grier group's research.)