Large-Scale Simulations of Clusters of Galaxies
P. M. Ricker, Alan C. Calder, L. J. Dursi A, B. Fryxell A, D. Q. Lamb A, P. Macneice B, K. Olson A, R. Rosner A, Francis X. Timmes, J. W. Truran A, H. M. Tufo A, M. Zingale · 2000
Abstract. We discuss some of the computational challenges encountered in simulating the evolution of clusters of galaxies. Eulerian adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) techniques can successfully address these challenges but are currently being used by only a few groups. We describe our publicly available AMR code, FLASH, which uses an object-oriented framework to manage its AMR library, physics modules, and automated verification. We outline the development of the FLASH framework to include collisionless particles, permitting it to be used for cluster simulation. SIMULATING CLUSTERS Clusters of galaxies are the largest gravitationally bound objects in the universe. They consist mainly of dark matter and diffuse, hot plasma, with galaxies themselves contributing only a few percent of the total mass. Clusters have attracted attention in recent years because they are large enough to serve as a representative sample of the universe; they provide strong contraints on cosmological models. Clusters are also interesting from an astrophysical point of view. The intracluster medium