Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 ii Paper 2 26J a Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
For a unit-speed space curve, setThese form the Frenet trihedron. With the signed torsion convention compatible with the question, the Frenet-Serret formulas areFor an oriented surface with unit normal , the signed geodesic curvature is
On the unit sphere . Since , differentiation givesWrite . Then , and differentiating this expression and comparing the coefficient with givesThus, wherever the displayed quantities are defined,Finally,which is the stated curvature decomposition for a spherical curve.