Superstrings, Cantorian-fractal spacetime and quantum-like chaos in atmospheric flows

Atmospheric flows exhibit long-range spatiotemporal correlations manifested as the fractal geometry to the global cloud cover pattern concomitant with the inverse power law form for spectra of temporal fluctuations. Such non-local connections are ubiquitous to dynamical systems in nature and are identified as signatures of self-organized criticality. A recently developed cell dynamical system model for atmospheric flows predicts the observed self-organized criticality as a natural consequence of quantum-like mechanics governing flow dynamics. The model is based on the concept that spatial integration of enclosed small scale fluctuations results in the formation of large eddy circulations. The model predicts the following: (a) The flow structure consists of an overall logarithmic spiral trajectory with the quasiperiodic Penrose tiling pattern for the internal structure. (b) Conventional power spectrum analysis will resolve such spiral trajectories as a continuum of eddies with progressive increase in phase. (c) Increments in phase are concomitant with increases in period length and also represent the variance, a characteristic of quantum systems identified as 'Berry's phase'. (d) The universal algorithm for self-organized criticality is expressed in terms of the universal Feigenbaum constants, a and d, as 2a(2) = pi d, where the fractional volume intermittency of occurrence pi d contributes to the total variance 2a(2) of fractal structures. (e) The Feigenbaum constants are expressed as functions of the golden mean. (f) The quantum mechanical constants 'fine structure constant' and 'ratio of proton mass to electron mass', which are pure numbers and are obtained by experimental observations only, are now derived in terms of the Feigenbaum constant, a. (g) Atmospheric flow structure follows Kepler's third law of planetary motion. Therefore, Newton's inverse square law for gravitation also applies to eddy masses. The centripetal acceleration representing the inertial masses (of eddies) are equivalent to gravitational masses. The fractal-Cantorian structure of spacetime can also be visualized as a nested continuum of vortex (eddy) circulations, whose inertial masses obey Newton's inverse square law of gravitation. The model concept resembles a superstring model for subatomic dynamics which incorporates gravitational forces. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.