U.S.-Germany Cooperative Research on Numerical Modelling of Accretion Disk Coronae

该奖项支持科罗拉多大学的Mitchell Begelman和他的研究小组，以及德国图宾根大学天文学和天体物理研究所的Ruediger Staubert和其他人之间的合作。他们正在研究吸积盘周围炽热日冕释放出的硬X射线成分的来源。特别是，他们正试图通过数值分析开发一套自洽的模型，然后可以被其他天文学家更广泛地使用。这项合作计划结合了贝格曼和他的研究生詹姆斯·多夫在活动星系建模方面的理论技能，以及斯陶伯特教授和他的同事们的数据获取和分析技能。后者在研究X射线双星和其他系统中的高能现象方面一直是世界领先的小组之一。美方将负责开发计算机代码和基本理论模型；这些模型将通过德国小组获得的物理数据得到极大改进。X射线光谱学技术有了很大的改进，现在产生的X射线光谱数据质量足够高，足以保证详细的理论建模。该项目汇集了两个具有互补专业知识的研究小组，以完成这项任务，并提高对吸积盘日冕的理解。

This award supports collaboration between Mitchell Begelman and his research group at the University of Colorado, and Ruediger Staubert and others of the Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics of the University of Tuebingen, Germany. They are studying the origin of the hard X-ray component in emissions from hot coronae around accretion disks. In particular, they are attempting to develop a set of self-consistent models through numerical analysis which can then be used more widely by other astronomers. The collaborative plan combines the theoretical skills in modeling active galaxies possessed by Begelman and his graduate student, James Dove, with the data acquisition and analysis skills of Professor Staubert and his colleagues. The latter has been one of the leading groups in the world in the study of high energy phenomena in x-ray binaries and other systems. The U.S. side will be responsible for developing computer code and the basic theoretical models; these models will be greatly improved by the physical data obtained by the German group. The technique of x-ray spectroscopy has improved substantially, and now produces x-ray spectral data that is high enough quality to warrant detailed theoretical modeling. This project brings together two research groups with the complementary expertise to accomplish this task and improve understanding of accretion disk coronae.