Three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulation of an accretion flow in a close binary system

Abstract

Three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations of Roche-lobe overflow are performed by solving the Euler equations. The gas is assumed to be inviscid and adiabatic except in the case of shocks. Gas filling the critical Roche lobe of a mass-losing component flow through the L1 point towards a compact object to form an accretion disc. It is found that the accretion disc is not axisymmetric but characterized by a pair of spiral shocks, as was the case in two-dimensional calculations.