STScI Preprint #1199

Spiral Shocks in Accretion Discs

We perform two-dimensional numerical calculations of the tidal interaction between the companion star and the disc around the primary, in a cataclysmic variable system with parameters appropriate for the eclipsing dwarf nova binary IP Peg. We show that a spiral shock pattern is indeed obtained. We find, however, that it is impossible to reproduce the two-armed spiral that has been recently observed in IP Peg (Steeghs, Harlaftis, & Horne 1997) for realistic discs.

Status:

Appeared in: MNRAS, 295:L11-L14, 1998

Affiliations:

¹) Space Telescope Science Institute 3700 San Martin Dr. Baltimore, MD 21218 USA

²) Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology 4800 Oak Grove Dr., MS 238-332 Pasadena, CA 91109