@article {15902, title = {The N-body problem in spaces with uniformly varying curvature}, journal = {Journal of Mathematical Physics}, volume = {58}, year = {2017}, abstract = {

We generalize the curved\ N-body problem to spheres and hyperbolic spheres whose curvature\ κ\ varies in time. Unlike in the particular case when the curvature is constant, the\ equations of motion\ are non-autonomous. We first briefly consider the analog of the Kepler problem and then investigate homographic orbits for any number of bodies, proving the existence of several such classes of solutions on spheres. Allowing the curvature to vary in time offers some insight into the effect of an expanding universe in the context of the curved\ N-body problem, when\ κ\ satisfies\ Hubble{\textquoteright}s\ law. The study of these\ equations\ also opens the possibility of finding new connections between classical mechanics and general relativity.

}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4983681}, author = {Eric Boulter and Florin Diacu and Shuqiang Zhu} }