Chaos in orbits due to disk crossings.
We study orbits of halo stars in simple models of galaxies with disks and halos to see if the cumulative effects of the sudden changes in acceleration that occur at disk crossings can induce chaos. We find that they can, although not in all orbits and not in all potentials. Most of the orbits that become chaotic stay relatively close to the disk and range widely in the radial direction. Heavier disks and increased halo flattening both enhance the extent of the chaos. A limited range of experiments with a three-component model of the Milky Way with an added central bulge finds that many chaotic disk-crossing orbits can be expected in the central regions, and that prolateness of the halo is much more effective than oblateness in generating chaos.
Hunter
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Department of Mathematics, Florida State University, Tallahassee Florida 32306-4510, USA. hunter@math.fsu.edu