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Introduction to Astrophysical Fluids

Prof. Supratik Banerjee · IIT Kanpur

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About

The physics of astrofluids is the subject of active research during past seventy years.Starting from the solar wind and magnetospheric plasmas, the scope of astrophysical fluids expands upto large interstellar clouds. A thorough understanding of astrophysical fluid dydnamics is essential to understand fascinating phenomena like the formation of sunspots, solar flares, accretion disks, stellar winds, explosion of supernovae, the formation of stars etc. This course is structured to offer the students a systematic analytical approach towards various astrophysical concepts along with a research oriented outlook.

INTENDED AUDIENCE : Advanced UG and PG (Masters and PhD) students.

PREREQUISITES : Basic knowledge of vector analysis (algebra and calculus), partial differentiation, fluid dynamics and electromagnetism are required. A notion of Hamiltonian mechanics is preferable.

Lectures

Week 1

  1. Lecture 1: General introduction YouTube
  2. Lecture 2: Phase space and Liouville's theorem YouTube
  3. Lecture 3: Collisionless Boltzmann equation YouTube
  4. Lecture 4: Boltzmann equation for collisional system I YouTube
  5. Lecture 5: Boltzmann equation for collisional system II YouTube

Week 2

  1. Lecture 6: Equilibrium distribution function I YouTube
  2. Lecture 7: Equilibrium distribution function II YouTube
  3. Lecture 8: Derivation of moment equations I YouTube
  4. Lecture 9: Derivation of moment equations II YouTube
  5. Lecture 10: Application of moment equations in collisionless systems YouTube

Week 3

  1. Lecture 11 : Derivation of ideal fluid equations YouTube
  2. Lecture 12: Macroscopic forces on an ideal fluid YouTube
  3. Lecture 13: Properties of ideal fluid YouTube
  4. Lecture 14: Kevin's vorticity theorem YouTube
  5. Lecture 15: Conservative form and invariants in ideal fluids YouTube
  6. Lecture 16: Steady flow, streamlines and stream function YouTube

Week 4

  1. Lecture 17: Departure from Maxwellian distribution YouTube
  2. Lecture 18: Derivation of real fluid equations YouTube
  3. Lecture 19: Hydrostatics: Model of solar corona YouTube
  4. Lecture 20: Stellar/solar wind YouTube
  5. Lecture 21: Accretion disks I YouTube

Week 5

  1. Lecture 22: A small digression: Newtonian fluids YouTube
  2. Lecture 23: Accretion disk II YouTube
  3. Lecture 24: Weak perturbation in a compressible fluid: sound wave YouTube
  4. Lecture 25: Effect of nonlinearity: shocks YouTube

Week 6

  1. Lecture 26: Supernova explosion and spherical blast waves I YouTube
  2. Lecture 27: Supernova explosion and spherical blast waves II YouTube
  3. Lecture 28: de Laval nozzle and extragalactic jets YouTube
  4. Lecture 29: Convective instability and Swarzschild stability criterian YouTube

Week 7

  1. Lecture 30: Rayleigh Benard convection I YouTube
  2. Lecture 31: Rayleigh Benard convection II YouTube
  3. Lecture 32: Jeans instability YouTube
  4. Lecture 33: Waves and instabilities in a two-fluid interface I YouTube
  5. Lecture 34: Waves and instabilities in a two-fluid interface II YouTube

Week 8

  1. Lecture 35: Oscillations of stars YouTube
  2. Lecture 36: Oscillation of stars (contd.) YouTube
  3. Lecture 37: Rotation in astrofluids and Rayleigh criterion YouTube
  4. Lecture 38: Fluid dynamics in a rotating frame of reference YouTube
  5. Lecture 39: Vorticity theorem in rotating frame and Taylor-Proudman theorem YouTube

Week 9

  1. Lecture 40: Effect of rotation on a self gravitating mass YouTube
  2. Lecture 41: Effect of rotation in stars YouTube
  3. Lecture 42: Introduction to Plasmas YouTube
  4. Lecture 43: Description of Plasma YouTube

Week 10

  1. Lecture 44: Kinetic to fluid picture of plasmas YouTube
  2. Lecture 45: MHD fluids: magnetic pressure, magnetic tension and plasma beta YouTube
  3. Lecture 46: Inviscid invariants in MHD YouTube
  4. Lecture 47: Inviscid invariants in MHD (Contd.) YouTube
  5. Lecture 48: Elsasser variables in MHD YouTube

Week 11

  1. Lecture 49: Linear wave modes in MHD YouTube
  2. Lecture 50: MHD in space plasmas YouTube
  3. Lecture 51: Introduction to turbulence in fluids YouTube
  4. Lecture 52: Richardson-Kolmogorov phenomenology of turbulence YouTube

Week 12

  1. Lecture 53: Turbulent diffusion YouTube
  2. Lecture 54: Turbulent viscosity YouTube
  3. Lecture 55: Turbulence in MHD fluids YouTube
  4. Lecture 56: Introduction to astrophysical dynamos YouTube
  5. Lecture 57: Anti-dynamo theorem and turbulent dynamos YouTube

Syllabus and materials

At NPTEL, as the course publishes them.

Credits and licence

Institution
IIT Kanpur
Department
Physics
Teacher
Prof. Supratik Banerjee
Level
Graduate
Language
English
Subjects
Physics
Source
NPTEL
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA, as NPTEL states it. Non-commercial use only. NPTEL's terms
Attribution
NPTEL states: "Distributed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike / CC BY - NC - SA", beside a BY-NC-SA badge.
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