The outbursts of dwarf novae

Abstract

We present a numerical scheme for the evolution of an accretion disc through a dwarf nova outburst. We introduce a time-varying artificial viscosity into an existing smoothed particle hydrodynamics code optimized for two- and three-dimensional simulations of accretion discs. The technique gives rise to coherent outbursts and can easily be adapted to include a complete treatment of thermodynamics. We apply a two-dimensional isothermal scheme to the system SS Cygni, and present a wide range of observationally testable results.