On the Structure of Small-Scale Motion in the Core of the Earth

In 1996, St Pierre (1996) reported numerical simulations of a buoyant blob migrating across the earth's outer core and subject to the combined effects of rotation and an azimuthal magnetic field. He noted that the blob rapidly fragments into a series of plate-like structures. Quite independently, Davidson (1995, 1997) discovered a similar behaviour in the context of low- R m turbulence (without a Coriolis force) and showed that this phenomenon has its roots in the destruction of angular momentum by the Lorentz force. The purpose of this paper is to pull together these earlier studies and, in particular, to determine whether or not St. Pierre's platelets are also a consequence of the destruction of angular momentum. We confirm that this is indeed the case.