Homogeneity of maximal antipodal sets (Q2119662)

The author studies the geometry of the antipodal sets in a compact Riemannian symmetric space \(M\). Two points \(p,q\) in \(M\) are said to be antipodal if \(s_p(q)=q\), where \(s_p\) is the geodesic symmetry at \(p\), and a set \(S\) in \(M\) is said to be antipodal if any two points in \(S\) are antipodal. The main result of this paper is that a \textit{connected} maximal antipodal set \(S\) is homogeneous, i.e., there is a subgroup of \(I(M)\), the group of isometries of \(M\), acting transitively on \(S\). The notion of connectedness for an antipodal set plays an important role. Two antipodal points \(p,q\) are said to be connected if there is a shortest closed geodesic through \(p,q\). Then one considers point series \(\{p_i\}\) such that \(p_i\) is connected to \(p_{i+1}\), and an antipodal set \(S\) is said to be connected if for any two points \(p,q\) in \(S\) there is a connected point series \(\{p_i\}\) containing \(p\) and \(q\). Further, associated to an antipodal set \(S\) one constructs a subgroup \(G_S\) of \(I(M)\) generated by geodesic symmetries \(s_x\) where \(x\) is the middle point of a geodesic which joins two connected points \(p,q\) in \(S\). The case of the Grassmannian \(G_5(\mathbb{R}^{10})=\mathrm{SO}(10)/\mathrm{SO}(5)\times \mathrm{SO}(5)\) is studied in detail. Results are given for more general Grassmannians, and for symmetric \(R\)-spaces.