Forced two-dimensional turbulence in spectral and physical space

Two-dimensional (2D) turbulence in the energy range exhibits nonuniversal features, manifested in the departure (at low k) from the k(-5/3) energy spectrum law, variable energy flux, and irregular, nonlocal transfers. To unravel the underlying mechanism we conducted a detailed study of the 2D turbulence in spectral and physical space. It revealed complex multiscale organization of vorticity field and dynamic processes, ranging from large-scale meandering jets to strong localized vortices. The latter bear prime responsibility for the nonuniversal behavior of 2D turbulence, and we examined their statistical features and the growth mechanism. Our results are based on the numeric simulation of 2D turbulence on the 512 grid under different forcing-dissipation conditions.