On nearly parallel \(G_2\)-structures (Q1377248)

Nearly parallel \(G_2\)-manifolds are seven-dimensional manifolds admitting a spin structure with a Killing spinor. Excluding the case of the seven-dimensional sphere, there exist three types of such manifolds, depending on the dimension of the space \(KS\) of all Killing spinors. Nearly parallel \(G_2\)-manifolds with \(\dim (KS)=3\) are 3-Sasakian manifolds, and nearly parallel \(G_2\)-manifolds with \(\dim (KS)=2\) are Einstein-Sasakian manifolds. Examples of nearly parallel \(G_2\)-manifolds with \(\dim (KS)=1\) are the squashed 7-sphere, Wallach spaces and an Einstein metric on \(SO(5)/SO(3)\). In this paper, the authors construct new examples of nearly parallel \(G_2\)-manifolds with \(\dim (KS)\) \(=1\) from the examples of 3-Sasakian manifolds due to \textit{C. P. Boyer}, \textit{K. Galicki} and \textit{B. M. Mann} [J. Reine Angew. Math. 455, 183-220 (1994; Zbl 0889.53029)]. In fact, the authors prove that a seven-dimensional manifold with a 3-Sasakian structure has a second Einstein metric obtained from the given one by scaling the metric in the directions of the orbits of the Spin(3)-action. Furthermore, the authors study the automorphism group of compact nearly parallel \(G\)-manifolds, and they classify such manifolds with a large symmetry group.