Spatial inhomogeneity of heating of fluids in the gravity field is the cause of all motions in nature: in the atmosphere and the oceans on Earth, in astrophysical and planetary objects. All natural objects rotate and convective motions in rotating fluids are of interest in many geophysical and astrophysical phenomena. In many industrial applications, too (crystal growth, semiconductor manufacturing), heating and rotation are the main mechanisms defining the structure and quality of the material. Depending on the geometry of the systems and the mutual orientation of temperature and gravity field, a variety of phenomena will arise in rotating fluids, such as regular and oscillating waves, intensive solitary vortices and regular vortex grids, interacting vortices and turbulent mixing. In this book the authors elucidate the physical essence of these phenomena, determining and classifying flow regimes in the space of similarity numbers. The theoretical and computational results are presented only when the results help to explain basic qualitative motion characteristics. The book will be of interest to researchers and graduate students in fluid mechanics, meteorology, oceanography and astrophysics, crystallography, heat and mass transfer.

Spatial inhomogeneity of heating of fluids in the gravity field is the cause of all motions in nature: in the atmosphere and the oceans on Earth, in astrophysical and planetary objects. All natural objects rotate and convective motions in rotating fluids are of interest in many geophysical and astrophysical phenomena. In many industrial applications, too (crystal growth, semiconductor manufacturing), heating and rotation are the main mechanisms defining the structure and quality of the material. Depending on the geometry of the systems and the mutual orientation of temperature and gravity field, a variety of phenomena will arise in rotating fluids, such as regular and oscillating waves, intensive solitary vortices and regular vortex grids, interacting vortices and turbulent mixing. In this book the authors elucidate the physical essence of these phenomena, determining and classifying flow regimes in the space of similarity numbers. The theoretical and computational results are presented only when the results help to explain basic qualitative motion characteristics. The book will be of interest to researchers and graduate students in fluid mechanics, meteorology, oceanography and astrophysics, crystallography, heat and mass transfer.

The necessity of eliminating the possibility of a large-scale nuclear conflict from the future of mankind is the most important problem of our times. There is no doubt that the probable aftereffects of such a conflict would by many times exceed the damage caused by the First and Second World Wars, the greatest in history. The question of the scale of the damage that would be inflicted upon liv ing nature by nuclear weapons has, however, not yet been fully clarified. It is clear that this damage would not be local, i.e., restricted to destruction in only the places of nuclear explosion. As a result of nuclear detonations, the atmosphere and hydrosphere would receive many harmful substances, including the radioactive waste products of nuclear reactions. These substances can be transferred by air flows and water currents over long distances, thus considerably increasing the area of harmful influence of nuclear bursts. There is no doubt that the indirect effects of nuclear warfare would inflict enor mous damage on mankind, since the present human society can only exist by a complicated system involving the production of foodstuffs, manufactured goods, medical supplies, etc. The destruction of even separate but important links of this system would bring about starvation, epidemics, and other calamities, which would spread to areas not directly involved in the nuclear conflict."