English translation of Sophie Kowalevski's "On the problem of the rotation of a rigid body about a fixed point"

TL;DR

This paper provides an English translation and digitisation of Sophie Kowalevski's 1889 original work on the mathematical problem of rigid body rotation, specifically the Kovalevskaya Top, making it accessible to modern audiences.

Contribution

It offers the first English translation and digital version of Kowalevski's seminal paper on rigid body rotation, preserving historical mathematical insights.

Findings

Introduces the Kovalevskaya Top problem

Provides foundational mathematical analysis of rigid body rotation

Historical significance in the development of mechanics

Abstract

This is an English translation and digitisation of Sophie Kowalevski's (also know as Sofya Kovalevskaya) paper on what is now known as the Kovalevskaya Top. The original paper was written in French and published in Vol 12 of Acta Mathematica in 1889 with the title "Sur le probleme de la rotation d'un corps solide autour d'un point fixe".