Spiral shocks on a Roche lobe overflow in a semi-detached binary system
Open Access
- 1 March 1986
- journal article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Vol. 219 (1) , 75-88
- https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/219.1.75
Abstract
Two-dimensional hydrodynamic calculations of a Roche lobe overflow in a semi-detached binary system with a mass ratio of unity are carried out. The region of the computation covers both a mass-losing star filling its critical Roche lobe and a mass-accreting compact star. Gas ejected from the mass-losing star with specified energy flows through the L1 point to form an elephant trunk and an accretion ring. It is found that spiral-shaped shocks are formed on the accretion ring. It is suggested that the gas in the accretion ring loses angular momentum at the shocks and spirals in towards the compact star even without viscosity.Keywords
This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: