Abstract
In this review, the equations of hydrodynamics, magnetohydrodynamics, and radiation hydrodynamics are presented, together with their corresponding nonideal source terms. I overview the current landscape of modern grid-based numerical techniques with an emphasis on numerical diffusion, which plays a fundamental role in stabilizing the solution but is also the main source of errors associated with these numerical techniques. I discuss in great detail the inclusion of additional important source terms, such as cooling and gravity. I also show how to modify classic operator-splitting techniques to avoid undesirable numerical errors associated with these additional source terms, in particular in the presence of highly supersonic flows. I finally present various mesh adaptation strategies that can be used to minimize these numerical errors. To conclude, I review existing astrophysical software that is publicly available to perform simulations for such astrophysical fluids.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 325-364 |
Number of pages | 40 |
Journal | Annual Review of Astronomy and Astrophysics |
Volume | 53 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 18 2015 |
Externally published | Yes |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science
Keywords
- Conservation laws
- Gas dynamics
- Magnetohydrodynamics
- Numerical simulations
- Radiation