The moduli of Weierstrass fibrations over \(\mathbb{P}^ 1\): Rationality (Q1316354)

Let \(Y, S\) be algebraic varieties over \(\mathbb{C}\); a pair \((p:Y \to S,s)\), is said to be a Weierstrass fibration if \(p\) is a morphism whose fibers are elliptic curves or rational curves with a node or a cusp, and \(s\) is a section of \(S\) not passing through the singularities of the fibers. The moduli space \(W_ N\) of Weierstrass fibrations over \(S = \mathbb{P}^ 1\) for which \(s^ 2 = - N\) in \(Y\) has been defined by \textit{R. Miranda} [Math. Ann. 255, 379-394 (1981; Zbl 0438.14023)]; in this paper it is proved that for all \(N \geq 1\), \(W_ N\) is rational. Let \(V_ n\) be the set of binary homogeneous forms of degree \(n\) in \(t,s\); then \(GL_ 2\) acts on \(V_ n\) like this: for all \(g = {\alpha \;\beta \choose \gamma \;\delta} \in GL_ 2\), for all \(f \in V_ n\): \(f \cdot g = f(\alpha t + \beta s, \gamma t + \delta s)\). There are induced actions on \(V_ n \times V_ m\), and \(W_ N\) is defined as the quotient \((V_{4N} \times V_{6N})^ s/GL_ 2\), where \((V_{4N} \times V_{6N})^ s\) is the open set of \(SL_ 2\)-stable points in \((V_{4N} \times V_{6N})\). -- The main ingredients of the proof are the fact that \(V^ s_{6N}/GL_ 2\) (which is birational to the moduli space of hyperelliptic curves of genus \(3N - 1)\) is rational and a result by \textit{I. V. Dolgachev} [in: Algebraic Geometry, Bowdoin 1985 = Proc. Summer Res. Inst., Brunswick 1985, Part 2, Proc. Symp. Pure Math. 46, No. 2, 3- 16 (1987; Zbl 0659.14009)].