Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics

The course aims at providing theoretical knowledge concerning interaction of radiation and matter and astrophysical fluid dynamics. Several radiation processes will be covered, such as dipole radiation, scattering Thomson and Compton, bremsstrahlung, and fundamentals of radiative transport. Then, the cours will consider the fluid equations, discussing astrophysically relevant equilibrium configurations (such as polytropic spheres), wave phenomena and instabilities, siuch as the gravitational instability

At the end of the course the student will:
1. Recognize the spectrum and emission features of the most important radiative processes in Astrophysics.
2. Solve the radiative transfer equation in simple geometries.
3. Apply when encessary the appropriate approximations, such as the radiative diffusion one.
4. Recognize and describe hydrostatic balance configurations in astrophysical context.
5. Derive the dispersion relation for sound waves and other dispersive waves.
6. Solve the shock conditions.
7. Recognize the fluid processes at play in the dynamics of astronomical systems, such as stars, the interstemmar medium and gas orbiting compact objects.