Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2019 / ib / Paper 2 / 15A / Solution

The two Euler-Lagrange equations areDifferentiating $\kappa =f-u^{\prime }{f}_{u^{\prime }}-w^{\prime }{f}_{w^{\prime }}$ along an extremal and using these equations gives $d\kappa /dx=f_x$. Hence the Beltrami identity makes $\kappa$ constant when $f$ has no explicit dependence on $x$. If $f$ omits $u$ or $w$, that variable is a cyclic coordinate and the corresponding momentum $f_{u^{\prime }}$ or $f_{w^{\prime }}$ is an additional first integral; continuous symmetries give the analogous conserved quantities through Noether's theorem.

Put $A=1-m/u$. Since $w$ is cyclic,for a constant $\lambda$. The Beltrami integral isTherefore

If $\kappa =-{\lambda }^2$, then $u^{\prime 2}={\lambda }^{2}m/u$ andFor $z>1$, definethe hinted identity gives $F^{\prime }(z)=z^{3/2}/(z-1)$. Hence $w=C\pm mF(u/m)$. Because $F(z)\to +\infty$ as $z\to \infty$, the prescribed limit selects the minus sign:As $u\downarrow m$, the logarithm tends to $-\infty$, so every such solution satisfies $\boxed{w\to +\infty }$.