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V. N. Gamezo, E. S. Oran (Laboratory for Computational Physics and Fluid Dynamics, NRL)
We continue to study thermonuclear explosions of carbon-oxygen white dwarfs (WD) using a three-dimensional reactive fluid dynamic model. Our previous numerical results obtained for the first 1.8-2.0 s of the explosion show that the explosion is likely to involve a thermonuclear detonation that appears after the initial deflagration stage. Here we model the propagation of the detonation wave and the evolution of the expanding WD for later times. The results show that by 3 seconds after the beginning of the explosion, the WD radius increases by a factor of 20, the temperature in the center of the WD drops below 109 K, and the material continues to expand without energy release. Outer layers of WD still contain unburned carbon in some locations and are accelerated to velocities above 20,000 km/s.
This work was supported in part by the NASA ATP program (NRA-02-OSS-01-ATP) and by the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) through the Office of Naval Research. Computing facilities were provided by the DOD HPCMP program.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 5
© 2004. The American Astronomical Society.