Hydrodynamics

Gas and fluid dynamics play an important role in many astrophysical processes. When addressing these physical phenomena, we refer to the collection of solvers by the generic term hydrodynamics. Gas dynamics forms the basis for our understanding of star and planet formation; it drives X-ray sources and accretion onto supermassive black holes, and it dictates the appearance of galaxies. In AMUSE, hydrodynamics is addressed numerically using two quite distinct methods: the Lagrangian formalism with smoothed particles, and Eulerian grid-based finite-volume formalisms. These approaches are complementary. Hybrid approaches that combine the advantages of both methods are also available in AMUSE. Simulating hydrodynamics is an art, but one with a solid mathematical background.