A simple proof that rational curves on K3 are nodal (Q1849644)

The author proves the following theorem: All rational curves in the primitive class of a general \(K3\) surface of genus \(g \geq 2\) are nodal. This result had already been proved [\textit{Xi Chen}, J. Algebr. Geom. 8, 245--278 (1999; Zbl 0940.14024)] but the proof presented here is new and simpler than the one in that preprint. In both works, the author uses a degeneration technique, but while in the former he used a degeneration of the \(K3\) surface to the union of two rational surfaces, in the present work the general \(K3\) surface is specialized to a \(K3\) surface with Picard lattice \(\left( \begin{smallmatrix} -2 & 1 \\ 1 & 0 \end{smallmatrix} \right)\).