Explore the fascinating world of astrophysical fluid dynamics in this comprehensive seminar presented by Professor James Stone from the School of Natural Sciences at the Institute for Advanced Study. Delve into various celestial phenomena, including the Sun, Jupiter's atmosphere, and the Carina nebula, while examining the mathematical models and numerical methods used to study them. Learn about ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), MHD waves, and their phase velocities through Friedrichs diagrams. Discover cutting-edge computational techniques, such as finite-volume discretization, Godunov's method, and Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR), used to simulate and analyze complex astrophysical systems. Gain insights into the validation of physics modules and the importance of relativistic ray-tracing in future research.
Overview
Syllabus
Intro
Example: The Sun
Jupiter's atmosphere
HST image of region in Carina nebula
Crab nebula (supernovae remnant)
Mathematical Model
Ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD)
MHD waves.
Phase velocities of MHD waves: Friedrichs diagrams.
Circularly polarized Alfven waves.
Numerical Methods
World's fastest (open) computer
Algorithms: finite-volume discretization.
Godunov's orginal (first-order) method
Higher-order methods
Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR)
Validating physics modules
Relativistic ray-tracing important
Future Work
Taught by
Institute for Advanced Study
