Smoothed particle rendering for fluid visualization in astrophysics

The astrophysical smoothed particle hydrodynamics is applied to the radiative transfer problem for the direct visualization of 3-D scalar fields. The Smoothed Particle Rendering (SPR) integrates the ray equation through the opaque medium and calculates the global contribution of scattered light. The opacity represents the density scalar. The emissivity and the flux direction are derived by the temperature field and its gradient. This method has some common features with Voxel Volume Rendering and Radiosity Method. The SPR is applicable both to grid data and to particle configurations. The validity of SPR indicates the possibility to simulate the radiation hydrodynamics.