Document Stellar Fluid Dynamics and Numerical Simulations: From the Sun to Neutron Stars
M. Rieutord and B. Dubrulle (eds)
EAS Publications Series, 21 (2006) 5-5
DOI: 10.1051/eas:2006104
An introduction to thermal convection
M. RieutordLaboratoire d'Astrophysique de l'Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées, UMR 5572, CNRS et Université Paul Sabatier, 14 avenue E. Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
Abstract
In this lecture I propose a little tour of thermal convection and its
applications in astrophysics. The first part of the lecture is devoted
to a qualitative introduction to the convective instability using the
Schwarzschild criterion; then, concentrating on the equations governing
the fluid motions, I introduce the Boussinesq and anelastic
approximations which are so often used in these problems. The following
part focuses on the Rayleigh-Bénard model which is worked out in
detail up to the Landau equation and the Lorenz strange attractor.
Finally, I briefly sketch out some results on turbulent convection and
end the lecture with the case of stellar convection.
© EAS, EDP Sciences 2006