The Structure of Rapidly Rotating Polytropes

Abstract

The structure of rapidly rotating polytropes is investigated using an approximation technique of integrating outwards from the centre and inwards from the surface, matching the two solutions at an interface. Results are presented for values of the polytropic index n = 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4. The method used is an extension of Jeans' generalized Roche model.