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Split the Surplus Three Ways and a Curved Problem Becomes a Flat One ── subtract a third of it from each angle and solve as a plane triangle, and the residual grows as the square of the excess, staying at 4.106x10^-4 of it even at a million km^2 ── [Paper 512]

Sep 2026 · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)

Abstract

A triangle on a curved surface is taken to require curved tools. This paper shows that splitting the surplus three ways lets flat tools suffice──the residual grows as the square and vanishes within practical range. No new theorem or law is claimed. Scope of this paper (scope note): No new theorem or law is claimed──the formula for spherical excess and Legendre’s theorem are both standard. No geodesy is built──the flattening of the Earth, survey errors and the practice of triangulation are not the subject; only triangles on a sphere. The second-order coefficient is not derived──a known value is used for the residual’s coefficient; it is not derived here. The angles themselves are not solved──no sides or angles are computed; only the size of the residual. Only a sphere──on an ellipsoid the excess formula changes, and that is not entered. Relation to earlier papers: Paper 409 showed that no undistorted map exists, giving 1.4113 degrees of surplus at a million km^2──this paper examines how that surplus can be disposed of. Paper 224 showed that a surface flat wherever it is touched still totals 4pi──the same shape: the surplus is small locally and does not vanish globally. Paper 300 showed that a shared root can be decided──solving by spreading and solving on the curved surface are distinct roots. Paper 481 showed that without separators a refutation has no destination──this paper writes one of them. What is added is giving the excess at three areas, confirming by inversion that the area returns, showing the residual growing as the square at 10000.000000, giving the ratios 4.106x10^-4 and 4.106x10^-8, and placing the separator in the manner of approximating. First, the spherical excess is proportional to the area──0.508171 arcseconds at 100 km^2, and 10^4 times that for 10^4 times the area (Section 2). Second, at a million km^2 the excess is 1.411586 degrees (Section 2). Third, inverting returns the area──1000000.000000 against 1000000 (Section 2). Fourth, this is the core of the paper. After the split, a hundredfold area multiplies the residual by 10000.000000──it grows as the square of the excess (Section 3). Fifth, even at a million km^2 the residual is 4.106x10^-4 of the excess, and at 100 km^2 it is 4.106x10^-8 (Section 3). Sixth, the separator is whether the surplus is spread out or the surface kept curved (Section 4). A triangle on a curved surface is taken to require curved tools──spherical trigonometry, the plane formulas being unusable. But the excess is merely proportional to the area, not scattered among the angles: it is a single number epsilon, and spreading it may move the problem to the plane. The excess is proportional to the area──at R=6371 km it is 0.508171 arcseconds at 100 km^2, 50.817105 at 10^4 and 5081.710534 at 10^6. At a million km^2 that is 1.411586 degrees, so the angles of the triangle sum to 181.4 degrees. It is proportional to the area, rising 10000.000000-fold for 10^4 times the area. Inverting returns 1000000.000000. Even at 100 km^2 it is 0.508171 arcseconds: a triangle some 15 km on a side is measurable by nineteenth-century surveying and not small enough to ignore. Split three ways, only the square remains──subtracting epsilon/3 from each angle leaves a residual of 1.011622x10^-13 at 100 km^2 and 1.011622x10^-5 at 10^6. A hundredfold area multiplies the residual by 10000.000000 while the excess rises only a hundredfold, so the ratio worsens a hundredfold. Even so, at a million km^2 the ratio is 4.106x10^-4, under one part in 2400 of the excess: spread it once and the remainder vanishes within practical range. At 100 km^2 the ratio is 4.106x10^-8, four orders smaller. So the quality of the approximation is set by the area, not by shape or position: a triangle anywhere leaves the same residual for the same area. The split works because it cancels the first-order term exactly; subtract it all from one angle and a first-order term survives. One thing separates them──is the surplus spread out and the problem moved to the plane, or is the surface kept curved. Spread it, and flat tools suffice──the plane sine and cosine rules──at the cost of a second-order error. Keep it curved, and there is no error, at the cost of different tools. The two are distinct roots by the criterion of Paper 300: both are “solving a triangle”, but one is an approximation carrying error and one exact. The surplus Paper 409 reported is this excess, 1.4113 degrees at a million km^2, the same quantity as this paper’s 1.411586; there it was shown not to vanish, here it is shown to be spreadable. It has the shape of Paper 224 as well: flat wherever touched and four pi in total, the surplus small locally and not vanishing globally, with the three-way split the tool that uses that smallness. This is one of the separators of Paper 481: when a plane calculation does not agree, whether the spreading was forgotten or the triangle was too large sends the repair elsewhere. To be honest──the second-order coefficient epsilon^2/60 was taken as known and is not derived here. What is shown is that the residual grows as the square and that its size is set by the area, not a verification of the coefficient itself. On the making of this work: The ideas and content of this work stem from the author's own considerations. Assistance from an AI (a large language model) was used for structuring, English translation, and checking the algebra. Any remaining errors or misinterpretations are solely the author's. Feedback and corrections are sincerely appreciated. Keywords: spherical excess, Legendre's theorem, spherical triangle, geodesy, triangulation. ----- 曲面の三角形は、曲面の道具で解くほかないと思われている。本稿が示すのは、余りを三等分して引けば平面の道具で足りることである──残る誤差は過剰の二乗で増え、実用の範囲では消える。新しい定理も法則も主張しない。 本稿の射程(射程注記):新しい定理も法則も主張しない──球面過剰の公式もルジャンドルの定理も標準的である。測地学を作らない──地球の扁平、測量の誤差、実際の三角測量の手順は主題ではない。球面の三角形だけを見る。二次の係数を導かない──残差の係数は既知の値を使っており、本稿で導いてはいない。角そのものを解かない──三角形の辺や角を実際に解いてはおらず、近似の残差の大きさだけを見る。球以外を扱わない──回転楕円体では過剰の式が変わるが、そこには立ち入らない。既刊との関係:論文409 は歪まない地図が存在しないと示し、100 万 km^2 で 1.4113 度余ると出した──本稿はその余りを、どう処理すれば消えるかを見る。論文224 はどこを触っても平らで、合計は 4pi だと示した──余りが局所では小さく、大域では消えないという同じ形である。論文300 は同根か別根かが判定できると示した──均す解き方と曲面のまま解く解き方は別根である。論文481 は分離子が無いと反証の行き先が決まらないと示した──本稿はその分離子を一本書く。加えたのは、球面過剰を三つの面積で出したこと、逆算で面積に戻ることを確かめたこと、残差が二乗で増えることを 10000.000000 倍で示したこと、残差と過剰の比を 4.106x10^-4 と 4.106x10^-8 で出したこと、分離子を近似の作法に置いたことである。 第一に、球面過剰は面積に比例する──100 km^2 で 0.508171 秒角、10^4 倍の面積で 10^4 倍(第2節)。 第二に、100 万 km^2 の球面過剰は 1.411586 度である(第2節)。 第三に、逆算すると面積に戻る──1000000.000000 対 1000000(第2節)。 第四に、これが本稿の芯である。三等分して引いたあとの残差は、面積を 100 倍にすると 10000.000000 倍になる──過剰の二乗で増える(第3節)。 第五に、100 万 km^2 でも残差は過剰の 4.106x10^-4 で、100 km^2 では 4.106x10^-8 である(第3節)。 第六に、分離子は「余りを均すか、曲面のまま解くか」である(第4節)。 曲面の三角形は、曲面の道具で解くほかないと思われている──球面三角法があり、平面の公式は使えないという像である。だが超過は面積に比例するだけで、三つの角に散らばってはいない。一つの数 epsilon であり、それを均せば平面に持ち込めるかもしれない。過剰は面積に比例する──R=6371 km で、球面過剰は 100 km^2 で 0.508171 秒角、10^4 km^2 で 50.817105 秒角、10^6 km^2 で 5081.710534 秒角である。100 万 km^2 では 1.411586 度、つまり三角形の内角の和が 181.4 度あるということである。面積に比例し、10^4 倍の面積で 10000.000000 倍になる。逆算すると 1000000.000000 と面積に戻る。100 km^2 でも 0.508171 秒角あり、一辺 15 km ほどの三角形は十九世紀の測量でも測れる大きさだが、無視できるほどではない。三等分して引くと、二乗しか残らない──各角から epsilon/3 を引いて平面で解くと、残る誤差は 100 km^2 で 1.011622x10^-13、10^6 km^2 で 1.011622x10^-5 である。面積を 100 倍にすると残差は 10000.000000 倍になり、過剰は 100 倍にしかならないので、比は 100 倍で悪くなる。それでも 100 万 km^2 で比は 4.106x10^-4、過剰の 2400 分の 1 以下で、一度均せば残りは実用の範囲で消える。100 km^2 では比が 4.106x10^-8 と 4 桁小さい。だから近似の質は面積で決まり、形でも位置でもない。どこに置いた三角形でも、面積が同じなら同じだけ残る。三等分が効いているのは一次の項をちょうど消すからで、均さずに一つの角だけから引けば一次の項が残る。分けているものは一つ──余りを均して平面に持ち込むか、曲面のまま解くか。均すなら平面の道具で足り、正弦定理も余弦定理も平面の形が使えるが、代わりに二次の誤差を負う。曲面のまま解くなら誤差は無いが、代わりに道具が違う。二つは論文300 の基準で別根であり、どちらも「三角形を解く」だが、一方は近似で誤差を持ち、一方は厳密である。誤差の有無が判定になる。論文409 が出した余りはこの過剰そのもので、100 万 km^2 で 1.4113 度、本稿の 1.411586 度と同じ量である。あちらは「消えない」ことを、こちらは「均せる」ことを見ている。論文224 とも同じ形で、どこを触っても平らで合計は 4pi──局所では余りが小さく、大域では消えない。三等分は、その小ささを使う道具である。これは論文481 でいう分離子の一本で、「平面で計算したら合わなかった」という報告が来たとき、均し忘れたのか三角形が大きすぎたのかで直す先が違う。正直に言えば──二次の係数 epsilon^2/60 は既知の値を使っており、本稿では導いていない。示したのは残差が二乗で増えることと、その大きさが面積で決まることであって、係数そのものの検証ではない。 作成にあたって:本稿の着想と内容は、著者自身の考察に基づくものです。文章の構成整理や英訳、数式の確認には AI(大規模言語モデル)の助力を得ました。最終的な内容の解釈や誤りがあれば、それらはすべて著者の責に帰します。お気づきの点があれば、ご教示いただければ幸いです。 キーワード:球面過剰、ルジャンドルの定理、球面三角形、測地学、三角測量。

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