Chaos in galaxies

Abstract

After general considerations about limits of theories and models, where small changes may imply large effects, we discuss three cases in galactic astrophysics illustrating how galactic dynamics models may become insufficient when previously neglected effects are taken into account: 1. Like in 3D hydrodynamics, the non-linearity of the Poisson–Boltzmann system may imply dissipation through the growth of discontinuous solutions. 2. The relationship between the microscopic exponential sensitivity of N-body systems and the stability of mean field galaxy models. 3. The role of quantum physics in the dynamics of structure formation, considering that cosmological neutrinos are massive and semi-degenerate fermions.