Insights into the gas dynamics in galaxies via a particle modelTechniques of rarefied gas dynamics are applied to the astrophysical problem of gas flow in disk galaxies. Historically, studies of the interstellar gas dynamics in spiral galaxies have assumed the medium could be regarded as both isothermal and continuous. However, it now appears that the gaseous interstellar medium may be better idealized as a rarefied gas or discrete system of interacting particles. Principal evidence for this is that the galaxies themselves exhibit a degree of disorder and raggedness that is characteristic of a rarefied gaseous system with a Knudsen number of approximately 0.02-0.2. In this paper a particle model for gas flow in a spiral galaxy is developed and some implications of the results are discussed. The results are compared to an analytical inviscid calculation to gain further physical insight.
Document ID
19820029502
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Authors
Levinson, F. H. (Bell Telephone Laboratories, Inc. Allentown, PA, United States)
Roberts, W. W., Jr. (Institute for Computer Applications in Science and Engineering, Hampton; Virginia, University Charlottesville, VA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 10, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1981
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Meeting Information
Meeting: In: Rarefied gas dynamics; International Symposium