Energy Conservation in the Thin Layer Approximation: I. The Spherical Classic Case for Supernovae Remnants

Abstract

The thin layer approximation applied to the expansion of a supernova remnant assumes that all the swept mass resides in a thin shell. The law of motion in the thin layer approximation is therefore found using the conservation of momentum. Here we instead introduce the conservation of energy in the framework of the thin layer approximation. The first case to be analysed is that of an interstellar medium with constant density and the second case is that of 7 profiles of decreasing density with respect to the centre of the explosion. The analytical and numerical results are applied to 4 supernova remnants: Tycho, Cas A, Cygnus loop, and SN 1006. The back reaction due to the radiative losses for the law of motion is evaluated in the case of constant density of the interstellar medium.