Astrophysical Fluid Mechanics: A New Method For Simulating Supersonic Turbulence
Tuesday, May 6, 2008 - 11:28
in Astronomy & Space
Scientists have developed a new method for simulating turbulent fluids, which will open up new perspectives in the field of astrophysics. Turbulence is worth studying, because of the fundamental role that it plays in astrophysics. Turbulence is frequently modelled by Large Eddy Simulations (LES), where the dynamics of turbulent eddies are computed on large scales, while a subgrid scale model approximates the influence of smaller eddies. In astrophysics the LES approach is challenged, because gravity and thermal processes break the scale-invariance employed in LES over a wide range of scales.