The transition function of \(G_2\) over \(S^6\) (Q2330855)

Identify the exceptional Lie group \(G_2\) with the automorphism group \(\mathrm{Aut}({\mathbb{O}})\subset \mathrm{SO}(7)\) of the Cayley octonions. It is well-known that there is a fibration \(p: G_2\to{\mathbb{S}}^6\), which makes \(G_2\) a locally trivial \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\)-bundle over \({\mathbb{S}}^6\). Consider \({\mathbb{S}}^6\) as the unit \(6\)-sphere in the \(7\)-dimensional vector space of purely imaginary octonions. Let \(U_1={\mathbb{S}}^6\setminus \{ S\}\) and \(U_2= {\mathbb{S}}^6\setminus \{ N\}\), where \(S\) and \(N\) denote the south and the north poles, respectively. The author gives an explicit formula for the trivialization functions \(\psi_i: p^{-1}(U_i)\to U_i\times \mathrm{SU}(3)\), for \(i=1,2\). The transition function of the bundle \(G_2\to {\mathbb{S}}^6\) between the two charts \(U_1\) and \(U_2\) is the gluing map \(t_{12}: U_1\cap U_2\to \mathrm{SU}(3)\) for which \(\psi_1\circ \psi_2^{-1}(\xi,\phi)=(\xi, t_{12}(\xi)\phi)\), where \(\xi\in U_1\cap U_2\) and \(\phi\in \mathrm{SU}(3)\). Since the principal \(\mathrm{SU}(3)\)-bundles over \({\mathbb{S}}^6\) are classified by \(\pi_5(\mathrm{SU}(3))\cong {\mathbb{Z}}\), it is natural to ask to which element in \(\pi_5(\mathrm{SU}(3))\) does the fibration \(G_2\to {\mathbb{S}}^6\) correspond. This is equivalent to asking what is the homotopy class of the restriction of the transition function to the equator \({\mathbb{S}}^5\subset {\mathbb{S}}^6\). The question was answered in [J. Lie Theory 6, No. 1, 19--22 (1996; Zbl 0856.57035)] where \textit{L. M. Chaves} and \textit{A. Rigas} proved that the transition function corresponds to a generator of \(\pi_5(\mathrm{SU}(3))\). In this paper, the author improves the result in [loc. cit.] by giving an explicit formula for the restriction \(t_{12}\mid {\mathbb{S}}^5\).