Nonlinear stability of Euler flows in two-dimensional periodic domains

The non-quadratic conservation laws of the two-dimensional Euler equations are used to show that the gravest modes in a doubly-periodic domain with as pect ratio L = 1 are stable up to translations (or structurally stable) for finite-amplitude disturbances. This extends a previous result based on con servation of energy and enstrophy alone. When L < 1, a saturation bound is established for the mode with wavenumber \k\ = L-1 (the next-gravest mode), which is linearly unstable. The method is applied to prove nonlinear struc tural stability of planetary wave two on a rotating sphere.