Published in New Astronomy Reviews, Volume 48, Issue 10,
p. 843-859, 2004.
For a PDF version of the article, click here.
astro-ph/0406166
Abstract. If a point mass moves through a uniform gas cloud, at what rate does it accrete material? This is the question studied by Bondi, Hoyle and Lyttleton. This paper draws together the work performed in this area since the problem was first studied. Time has shown that, despite the simplifications made, Bondi, Hoyle and Lyttleton made quite accurate predictions for the accretion rate. Bondi-Hoyle-Lyttleton accretion has found application in many fields of astronomy, and these are also discussed.
Keywords: Accretion
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
BASICS
The Analysis of Hoyle & Lyttleton
Analytic Solution
The Analysis of Bondi and Hoyle
Connection to Bondi Accretion
NUMERICAL SIMULATIONS
Summary
Examples in the Literature
ISSUES IN BONDI-HOYLE-LYTTLETON FLOW
The Drag Force
Flow Stability
Non-uniform Boundary
Radiation Pressure
Relativity
APPLICATIONS
Binary Systems
Protostellar Clusters
Galaxy Clusters
Other Applications
SUMMARY
REFERENCES
