We have measured instantaneous velocity profiles in mercury thermal turbulence in a cylindrical cell of 1/2-aspect-ratio. In our previous work, we obtained some intriguing results from the measurement of the vertical velocity profile w(z) along the central axis of the cell. To investigate the velocity field in more detail, we have recently improved the apparatus so that horizontal velocity profiles u(x) and v(y) just below the top plate can be measured as well as w(z). In this paper, some preliminary results from the measurements of the horizontal profiles are introduced together with the speculation of the shape of the mean flow, and future prospects are presented.
展开▼
