Ogilvie Gordon I
Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Philos Trans A Math Phys Eng Sci. 2008 May 28;366(1871):1707-15. doi: 10.1098/rsta.2007.2180.
Maxwell's investigations into the stability of Saturn's rings provide one of the earliest analyses of the dynamics of astrophysical discs. Current research in planetary rings extends Maxwell's kinetic theory to treat dense granular gases of particles undergoing moderately frequent inelastic collisions. Rather than disrupting the rings, local instabilities may be responsible for generating their irregular radial structure. Accretion discs around black holes or compact stars consist of a plasma permeated by a tangled magnetic field and may be compared with laboratory fluids through an analogy that connects Maxwell's researches in electromagnetism and viscoelasticity. A common theme in this work is the appearance of a complex fluid with a dynamical constitutive equation relating the stress in the medium to the history of its deformation.
麦克斯韦对土星环稳定性的研究提供了最早的天体物理盘动力学分析之一。目前对行星环的研究扩展了麦克斯韦动力学理论，以处理经历适度频繁非弹性碰撞的致密颗粒气体。局部不稳定性可能是产生其不规则径向结构的原因，而不是破坏环。黑洞或致密恒星周围的吸积盘由被缠结磁场渗透的等离子体组成，通过将麦克斯韦在电磁学和粘弹性方面的研究联系起来的类比，可以与实验室流体进行比较。这项工作的一个共同主题是出现一种复杂流体，其动力学本构方程将介质中的应力与其变形历史联系起来。
