The Physics of Fluids and Plasmas : An Introduction for Astrophysicists

Rating:
Summary: From a student of Steve Balbus...
Review: A clear exposition of all areas of astrophysical fluid dynamics (along with some plasma physics). I'm disappointed not to have found anything from the recent (and exciting) advances in MHD instabilities during the 1990s. The Balbus-Hawley Instability is completely ignored, which is a huge failure; this instability has revolutionized accretion disk theory and angular momentum transport, and has been the groundwork for a surge in numerical simulations of accretion disks. It's a great fundamental book nonetheless.

Rating:
Summary: From a student of Steve Balbus...
Review: This book is intended for astrophysicists who want to learn some fluid dynamics and plasma physics. The book does cover traditional topics of plasma physics books--kinetic theory, continuum hydrodynamics and magnetohydrodynamics, and plasma theory. There is a definite emphasis on astrophysical topics, although there are tidbits on aerodynamic lift, tokamaks, etc. It is sufficiently interesting to be of at least some interest to general students of fluid dynamics or plasma physics.

The book begins with a sketch of the kinetic theory derivation of the Navier Stokes equations, beginning with the Hamilton equations, and moving through Liouville's theorem, the Boltzmann equation, and taking the BGK approximation. It is only a sketch, not a full scale tutorial on kinetic theory, but I believe something along these lines does belong in any fluid dynamics course taught by a physics department. (Such courses are sadly uncommon.)

The continuum derivation of the Navier-Stokes equations is presented next, and I find it weak. I prefer the systematic, integral-based approaches found in books by, e.g., Panton and Kundu. There is NO discussion of the deformation (a.k.a. strain rate) tensor and the Cauchy-Stokes decomposition. There are brief discussions of some standard flows (e.g, potential flow around a cylinder, viscous Poiseuille flow, aerodynamic lift) and a brief discussion of boundary layers.

The remaining fluid dynamics chapters are on gas dynamics, waves and instabilities, turbulence, and rotation. The turbulence chapter is the best short introduction to Kolmogorov's -5/3 law that I've found; a good preface to reading the chapter on turbulence in other intro books, or even a dedicated turbulence book like Frisch. The remaining 7 chapters of the book are on plasma physics, including magnetohydrodynamics (I'm not an expert here, so I won't comment on them).

The book was favorably reviewed in "Comtemporary Physics" and "Journal of Fluid Mechanics", both reviewers praising the author's "engaging style" but expressing disappointment at the lack of more special topics in astrophysics. As long as a reader does not study this book in isolation, though, I think this would be an excellent supplement to his or her studies. I took this book with me on a vacation and enjoyed the reading.

Rating:
Summary: Useful addition to a fluid dynamics library
Review: This book is intended for astrophysicists who want to learn some fluid dynamics and plasma physics. The book does cover traditional topics of plasma physics books--kinetic theory, continuum hydrodynamics and magnetohydrodynamics, and plasma theory. There is a definite emphasis on astrophysical topics, although there are tidbits on aerodynamic lift, tokamaks, etc. It is sufficiently interesting to be of at least some interest to general students of fluid dynamics or plasma physics.

The book begins with a sketch of the kinetic theory derivation of the Navier Stokes equations, beginning with the Hamilton equations, and moving through Liouville's theorem, the Boltzmann equation, and taking the BGK approximation. It is only a sketch, not a full scale tutorial on kinetic theory, but I believe something along these lines does belong in any fluid dynamics course taught by a physics department. (Such courses are sadly uncommon.)

The continuum derivation of the Navier-Stokes equations is presented next, and I find it weak. I prefer the systematic, integral-based approaches found in books by, e.g., Panton and Kundu. There is NO discussion of the deformation (a.k.a. strain rate) tensor and the Cauchy-Stokes decomposition. There are brief discussions of some standard flows (e.g, potential flow around a cylinder, viscous Poiseuille flow, aerodynamic lift) and a brief discussion of boundary layers.

The remaining fluid dynamics chapters are on gas dynamics, waves and instabilities, turbulence, and rotation. The turbulence chapter is the best short introduction to Kolmogorov's -5/3 law that I've found; a good preface to reading the chapter on turbulence in other intro books, or even a dedicated turbulence book like Frisch. The remaining 7 chapters of the book are on plasma physics, including magnetohydrodynamics (I'm not an expert here, so I won't comment on them).

The book was favorably reviewed in "Comtemporary Physics" and "Journal of Fluid Mechanics", both reviewers praising the author's "engaging style" but expressing disappointment at the lack of more special topics in astrophysics. As long as a reader does not study this book in isolation, though, I think this would be an excellent supplement to his or her studies. I took this book with me on a vacation and enjoyed the reading.

Rating:
Summary: A great book for the beginers.
Review: This book is really going to help those who are interested in Astrophysical Plasma. I have got this book just at the begining of my research career. "The Physics of Fluids and Plasmas" has made a unique attempt, where theories of neutral fluids and plasmas are developed simultaneously. Mathemetical details is very rare, but it understandable, since the title of this book contains "Introduction".