Instantons for the destabilization of the inner Solar System

Abstract

For rare events, path probabilities often concentrate close to a predictable path, called instanton. First developed in statistical physics and field theory, instantons are action minimizers in a path integral representation. For chaotic deterministic systems, where no such action is known, shall we expect path probabilities to concentrate close to an instanton? We address this question for the dynamics of the terrestrial bodies of the Solar System. It is known that the destabilization of the inner Solar System might occur with a low probability, within a few hundred million years, or billion years, through a resonance between the motions of Mercury and Jupiter perihelia. In a simple deterministic model of Mercury dynamics, we show that the first exit time of such a resonance can be computed. We predict the related instanton and demonstrate that path probabilities actually concentrate close to this instanton, for events which occur within a few hundred million years. We discuss the possible implications for the actual Solar System.

arXiv commentPhysical Review Letters, American Physical Society, In press

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• Path integral derivation and numerical computation of large deviation prefactors for non-equilibrium dynamics through matrix Riccati equations
• Timescales of Chaos in the Inner Solar System: Lyapunov Spectrum and Quasi-integrals of Motion
• Long-term instability of the inner Solar System: numerical experiments
• Enhancing Human-Machine Teaming for Medical Prognosis Through Neural Ordinary Differential Equations (NODEs)