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The most useful guide to the contour plot is the common saddle value. Direct polynomial factorization givesThus the level set $f=1/6$ is exactly the three complete linesTheir intersections are the three saddle points, and they enclose the origin in an equilateral triangle. Near the local minimum, the level sets are nearly circles because the leading term is $(x^2+y^2)/2$. For $0<c<1/6$, a closed contour surrounds the origin, while three separate open branches lie outside the triangular barrier. At the saddle level these components meet at the saddle points; above it the central closed contour has opened into the three outer channels.

The identity in polar coordinatesshows the rotation symmetry through $2\pi /3$. It identifies the function as the Hénon-Heiles potential and helps organize all three channels in the original sketch below. The dashed straight lines are the saddle level; labels on the other contours give $f$.