this post was submitted on 24 Sep 2023
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166
Mathematicians find 12,000 new solutions to 'unsolvable' 3-body problem (www.space.com)
submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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Mathematicians find 12,000 new solutions to 'unsolvable' 3-body problem::Calculating the way three things orbit each other is notoriously tricky, but a new study may reveal 12,000 new solutions.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Wsn't it solved long ago? There's even an old KSP mod 'Pricipia' for it.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

You can simulate a specific arrangement of n-bodies, where n > 2. Depending on how accurate you want it to be, you may need a supercomputer.

If n = 2, then you can work it out on a napkin. If n = 1, you can draw a circle, point at it, and say "I figured it out!"

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

So they mean there's no general solution. That doesn't mean that we can't find specific solutions.

As for your notion of solved, that's solved in a numerical sense.