Collaborative Research: Toward an Integrative Understanding of Galaxy Clusters: AMR MHD/N-body Simulations of Thermal and Nonthermal Processes

合作研究：全面理解星系团：热和非热过程的 AMR MHD/N 体模拟

• 批准号: 0807215
• 负责人: Jack Burns
• 金额: $ 25万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-09-15 至 2011-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0807215&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Toward; Integrative; Understanding

Galaxy clusters are the largest gravitationally bound structures in the universe and, therefore, are potent cosmological probes. Perhaps surprisingly, their baryonic (and observable) matter is principally in the hot, diffuse plasma located between the galaxies, i.e., the intracluster medium, not in luminous matter like stars. This intracluster medium is composed of thermal and nonthermal components. The thermal gas undergoes both cooling and heating (via feedback from supernovae and active galactic nuclei) in the central regions. The nonthermal component consists of cosmic rays, generated via shocks and active galactic nuclei, and magnetic fields.Despite their importance, the nonthermal constituents have received relatively little study in part because of the challenges in the numerical modeling needed to follow the relevant physics. In an effort to begin to close this gap in our understanding of galaxy cluster environments, Dr. Burns and collaborators will apply their recently developed adaptive mesh refinement magnetohydrodynamic N-body code to the problem. Most notably, this new tool is capable of evolving both cosmic rays and magnetic fields in the large-scale cosmological environment. Here it will be employed to simulate both thermal and nonthermal processes within galaxy clusters. These simulations will iterated upon until convergence is achieved with a combination of thermal and nonthermal physics that best reproduces available observations. Postdoctoral fellows and graduate students will be trained through active participation in all aspects of this work. The data from these simulations and the tools for converting the outputs into standard observational formats will be made available to the astronomical and broader community through an on-line archive. Dr. Burns and collaborators will also construct course modules showing concepts of cosmological gas and N-body particle dynamics via their numerical simulations for classes ranging from introductory astronomy to graduate astrophysics. These visualizations will also be developed into new planetarium shows.

星系簇是宇宙中最大的重力结构，因此是有效的宇宙学探针。也许令人惊讶的是，它们的重磅（和可观察）物质主要在位于星系之间的热，散射等离子体中，即，内部介质，而不是像恒星那样发光物质。这种簇内培养基由热和非热成分组成。热气体在中央区域进行冷却和加热（通过超新星和活性银河核的反馈）。非热成分由宇宙射线组成，宇宙射线是通过冲击和活跃的银河核产生的，磁场。尽管如此，尽管其重要性，但非热成分的研究很少，部分原因是遵循相关物理学所需的数值建模所需的挑战。为了开始在我们对星系群集环境的理解中缩小这一差距，Burns和合作者将应用其最近开发的自适应网状精炼磁流失动力N-Body代码。最值得注意的是，该新工具能够在大规模宇宙学环境中发展宇宙射线和磁场。在这里，它将用于模拟星系簇中的热过程和非热过程。这些模拟将迭代为止，直到通过最佳再现可用观测值的热物理和非热物理学的组合实现收敛。博士后研究员和研究生将通过积极参与这项工作的各个方面进行培训。这些模拟的数据以及将输出转换为标准观察格式的工具将通过在线档案中提供给天文和更广泛的社区。 Burns博士和合作者还将通过其数值模拟来构建课程模块，显示宇宙气体和N体粒子动力学的概念，用于从入门天文学到毕业的天体物理学的类别。这些可视化也将发展为新的天文馆节目。