Mathematics – Dynamical Systems
Scientific paper
Dec 2007
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007aas...211.9705v&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #211, #97.05; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 39, p.904
Mathematics
Dynamical Systems
Scientific paper
Chaotic behavior in dynamical systems with many degrees of freedom often manifests itself in models of such systems with only a few degrees of freedom. This is an investigation of chaotic behavior in the encounters and mergers of a pair of galaxies in which the system is modeled in terms of a nonlinear oscillator with only a few degrees of freedom. The dynamical equations of the model are an equation of motion governing the separation of the centers of mass of the two galaxies and tensor virial equations describing their internal dynamics. The system is constrained by the classical integrals of the motion of the gravitational many-body problem. The galaxies are modeled as Gaussian density distributions stratified on similar and similarly situated ellipsoids, and the stratification is required to evolve homologously. The system of governing equations is closed with the aid of an ad hoc model of changes in the kinetic energy tensors of the two galaxies. In the present account of the work, chaotic behavior is exhibited in a version of the model that represents head-on mergers of a dwarf galaxy with a giant galaxy. In this case, the drag force of dynamical friction is included in the equation governing the relative motion of the centers of mass of the galaxies. The manifestation of chaotic behavior that is presented for this model is exponential sensitivity of the oscillations of the dwarf galaxy to initial conditions.
No associations
LandOfFree
Chaos in the Mergers of Galaxies does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Chaos in the Mergers of Galaxies, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Chaos in the Mergers of Galaxies will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1480283