Local and Global Blow Downs of Transport Twistor Space

Abstract

Transport twistor spaces are degenerate complex $2$-dimensional manifolds $Z$ that complexify transport problems on Riemannian surfaces, appearing, e.g., in geometric inverse problems. This article considers maps $\beta :Z\to {\mathbb{C}}^2$ with a holomorphic blow-down structure that resolve the degeneracy of the complex structure and allow to gain insight into the complex geometry of $Z$. The main theorems provide global $\beta$-maps for constant curvature metrics and their perturbations and local $\beta$-maps for arbitrary metrics, thereby proving a version of the classical Newlander-Nirenberg theorem for degenerate complex structures.