Simulation of Supernova Expansion

Abstract

We study the possibility of laboratory modeling of some processes that are intrinsic to supernova (SN) explosion by means of powerful lasers (the so-called laboratory astrophysics); in particular, the possibility of reproducing astrophysical data via numerical models was originally aimed at laser plasma simulation. First of all, we analyze hydrodynamic similarity criteria for the considered processes. Then, we conduct 1D and 2D hydrodynamic simulations to model the expansion dynamics of the SN remnant (the progenitor mass is ∼5–15 that of the Sun) during several hundreds of seconds after the explosion, including initially asymmetric configurations. Basing on the similarity criteria, we consider possible laser targets – simulators for a supernova, which mimic some processes inherent in astrophysical phenomenon, such as shock wave propagation through a medium, the development of hydrodynamic instabilities at contact boundaries of shells of different densities, etc. We present a simple solution to the problem of blast wave propagation in a medium with density distributed according to a decreasing power law, which is a good approximation for the density distribution in a supernova progenitor.