Incompressible Viscous Fluid Flows in a Thin Spherical Shell

Abstract.Linearized stability of incompressible viscous fluid flows in a thin spherical shell is studied by using the two-dimensional Navier–Stokes equations on a sphere. The stationary flow on the sphere has two singularities (a sink and a source) at the North and South poles of the sphere. We prove analytically for the linearized Navier–Stokes equations that the stationary flow is asymptotically stable. When the spherical layer is truncated …