The Lunelli-Sce hyperoval in \(\text{PG}(2,16)\) (Q1841857)

A hyperoval in a projective plane of even order \(n\) is a set of \(n+2\) points, no three of which are collinear. In \(\text{PG}(2,16)\) there are two distinct classes of hyperovals: the regular ones, which are just conics together with their nuclei, and the Lunelli-Sce hyperovals. The authors provide a group-theoretical construction of these latter hyperovals. They use this construction to derive the full automorphism group, and to give computer-free proofs of some (known but sometimes unpublished) properties, e.g., they show that there are exactly 18 regular hyperovals meeting a fixed Lunelli-Sce hyperoval in the maximal number of 8 points, and that there exist three 9-arcs in \(\text{PG}(2,16)\), the union of any two of which gives a Lunelli-Sce hyperoval.