A hydrodynamical model of the circumstellar bubble created by two massive stars

Allard Jan van Marle, Zakaria Meliani, Alexandre Marcowith

Published 2012-04-10, updated 2012-04-18Version 3

Numerical models of the wind-blown bubble of massive stars usually only account for the wind of a single star. However, since massive stars are usually formed in clusters, it would be more realistic to follow the evolution of a bubble created by several stars. We develope a two-dimensional (2D) model of the circumstellar bubble created by two massive stars, a 40 solar mass star and a 25 solar mass star, and follow its evolution. The stars are separated by approximately 16 pc and surrounded by a cold medium with a density of 20 particles per cubic cm. We use the MPI-AMRVAC hydrodynamics code to solve the conservation equations of hydrodynamics on a 2D cylindrical grid using time-dependent models for the wind parameters of the two stars. At the end of the stellar evolution (4.5 and 7.0 million years for the 40 and 25 solar mass stars, respectively), we simulate the supernova explosion of each star. Each star initially creates its own bubble. However, as the bubbles expand they merge, creating a combined, aspherical bubble. The combined bubble evolves over time, influenced by the stellar winds and supernova explosions. The evolution of a wind-blown bubble created by two stars deviates from that of the bubbles around single stars. In particular, once one of the stars has exploded, the bubble is too large for the wind of the remaining star to maintain and the outer shell starts to disintegrate. The lack of thermal pressure inside the bubble also changes the behavior of circumstellar features close to the remaining star. The supernovae are contained inside the bubble, which reflects part of the energy back into the circumstellar medium.