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Fluid instabilities around accreting X-ray sources

Conference · · Adv. Space Res.; (United States)
OSTI ID:6207199
Some aspects of fluid instabilities occurring in the magnetospheres of accreting neutron stars are discussed. It is pointed out that (1) in the absence of strong differential rotation, the accreting plasma should be drawn out into spiralling, sheet-like structures, resulting in efficient mixing between the two media; (2) the Rayleigh-Taylor instability also acts to limit the X-ray luminosity in super-critical sources; and (3) magnetic shear has a strong stabilizing influence on Kelvin-Helmholtz modes, and its presence may allow substantial amounts of material to be supported around the magnetosphere.
Research Organization:
Bonn Universitaet, West Germany
OSTI ID:
6207199
Report Number(s):
CONF-8307144-
Conference Information:
Journal Name: Adv. Space Res.; (United States) Journal Volume: 3
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English