Asymptotic Antipodal Solutions as the Limit of Elliptic Relative Equilibria for the Two- and n-Body Problems in the Two-Dimensional Conformal Sphere

We consider the two- and n -body problems on the two-dimensional conformal sphere M R 2 , with a radius R > 0 . We employ an alternative potential free of singularities at antipodal points. We study the limit of relative equilibria under the SO(2) symmetry; we examine the specific conditions under which a pair of positive-mass particles, situated at antipodal points, can maintain a state of relative equilibrium as they traverse along a geodesic. It is identified that, under an appropriate radius–mass relationship, these particles experience an unrestricted and free movement in alignment with the geodesic of the canonical Killing vector field in M R 2 . An even number of bodies with pairwise conjugated positions, arranged in a regular n -gon, all with the same mass m , move freely on a geodesic with suitable velocities, where this geodesic motion behaves like a relative equilibrium. Also, a center of mass formula is included. A relation is found for the relative equilibrium in the two-body problem in the sphere similar to the Snell law.