Re:An atlas of periodic solutions to the three-body problem
by msuvakov on Tuesday September 15, 2026 @02:08PM
(#49716437)
Thanks for the update! I sent you an email with more details regarding the layout and shape sphere.
For anyone else interested in the math behind the shape sphere coordinates and topological free group classification, I put together an agent skill with code examples here: https://github.com/suvakov/vibes/blob/main/skills/shape_sphe...
After you sent your question I noticed an issue with the "hunt" settings. Orbit novelty was not properly assessed, and it just kept re-discovering already existing orbit families. I updated the search based on your suggestions and just submitted an update that now checks candidates like this:
- Does the motion really repeat? An independent more high precision periodicity check is performed to confirm that bodies truly return to their starting positions and velocities - Is it a different form of an existing orbit? Compares against reference orbits from the atlas, allowing for rotation, different starting points in time, rescaling, reflection, and relabeling of bodies -Is it just the same orbit traced several times? Checks for shorter repeated periods -Now topological information is taken into account as well. In the current version, I use reduced syzygy sequences that record which body is in the middle whenever the three bodies are lined up. This was easier to implement than the familiar a, b, A, B notation.
Also, new candidates here are not automatically declared as new discoveries. They will undergo additional validation before they are added to the atlas.
The shape-sphere suggestion sounds great - would you suggest adding this to the "hunt" page, or to every orbit in the atlas?