Trapezoid central configurations

We classify all planar four–body central configurations where two pairs of the bodies are on parallel lines. Using cartesian coordinates, we show that the set of four–body trapezoid central configurations with positive masses forms a two–dimensional surface where two symmetric families, the rhombus...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied mathematics and computation Vol. 346; pp. 127 - 142
Main Authors: Corbera, Montserrat, Cors, Josep M., Llibre, Jaume, Pérez-Chavela, Ernesto
Format: Journal Article Publication
Language:English
Published: Elsevier Inc 01.04.2019
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ISSN:0096-3003, 1873-5649
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:We classify all planar four–body central configurations where two pairs of the bodies are on parallel lines. Using cartesian coordinates, we show that the set of four–body trapezoid central configurations with positive masses forms a two–dimensional surface where two symmetric families, the rhombus and isosceles trapezoid, are on its boundary. We also prove that, for a given position of the bodies, in some cases a specific order of the masses determines the geometry of the configuration, namely acute or obtuse trapezoid central configuration. We also prove the existence of non–symmetric trapezoid central configurations with two pairs of equal masses.
ISSN:0096-3003
1873-5649
DOI:10.1016/j.amc.2018.10.066