When is Uniform Rotation an Energy Minimum?

A simple variational calculation is presented showing that a uniformly rotating barotropic fluid in an external potential attains a true energy minimum if and only if the rotation profile is everywhere subsonic. If regions of supersonic rotation are present, fluid variations exist that could take th...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Fromang, S, Balbus, S
Format: Journal article
Published: 2002