Generalized normal homogeneous spheres \(S^{4n+3}\) with greatest connected motion group \(\mathrm{Sp}{(n+1)\cdot \mathrm{U}(1)}\) (Q392718)

A metric space \((M, \rho)\) is said to be ``generalized normal homogeneous'' (or \(\delta\)-homogeneous) if for any two points \(x, y \in M\), there exists an isometry \(f \in \mathrm{Isom}(M, \rho)\) such that \(f(x) = y\) and \(\rho(x, f(x)) \geq \rho(z, f(z))\) for any \(z \in M\). This notion plays an interesting role in Riemannian geometry; every normal homogeneous Riemannian manifold is generalized normal homogeneous, and every generalized normal homogeneous Riemannian manifold is geodesic orbit (i.e., all geodesics are homogeneous) and has nonnegative sectional curvature. The main result of this paper classifies generalized normal homogeneous Riemannian metrics on \(S^{4n+3}\) with greatest Lie group of isometries \(\mathrm{Sp}(n) \times \mathrm{U}(1)\). The author also studies related geometries, such as lens spaces covered by them, positivity of the sectional curvatures, natural reductivity, and weak symmetry.