16/abril/21 – Stellar Evolution and Tidal Dissipation in REBOUNDx (BSc Stanley Baronett, University of Nevada)

We introduce two new features to REBOUNDx, an extended library for the N-body integrator REBOUND. The first is a convenient parameter interpolator for coupling different physics and integrators using numerical splitting schemes. The second implements a constant time lag model for tides (without evolving spins) from Hut (1981). We demonstrate various examples of these features using post-main sequence stellar evolution data from MESA (Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics). These additional effects are publicly available as of REBOUNDx’s latest release.