Hydrodynamic Viscosity and Self-gravitation in Accretion Disks

Session 66 - Galaxies.
Display session, Thursday, June 11
Atlas Ballroom,

[66.17] Hydrodynamic Viscosity and Self-gravitation in Accretion Disks

W. J. Duschl (ITA, Heidelberg, Germany and MPIfR, Bonn, Germany), P. A. Strittmatter (Steward Obs. and MPIfR, Bonn, Germany), P. L. Biermann (MPIfR, Bonn, Germany)

We propose a generalization of the viscosity prescription in geometrically thin accretion disks which is applicable for selfgravitating as well as non-selfgravitating disks. The prescription is based turbulent flows at the critical effective Reynolds number. It allows for consistent models of thin selfgravitating disks, and recovers the \alpha disk solution as the limiting case of negligible selfgravity, i.e., practically massless disks. We suggest that such selfgravitating disks may explain the observed spectra of protoplanetary disks and yield a natural explanation for the radial motions inferred from the observed metallicity gradients in disk galaxies.

Program listing for Thursday