Limit linear series: Basic theory.
We are concerned with limits of Weierstrass points under degeneration of smooth curves to stable curves of non compact type, union of two irreducible smooth components meeting transversely at points. The case having already been treated by Eisenbud and Harris in [8], we analyze the situation for .
We prove that k (k ≥ 9) non-conjugate symmetries of a Riemann surface of genus g have at most 2g - 2 + 2r - 3(9 - k) ovals in total, where r is the smallest positive integer for which k ≤ 2r - 1. Furthermore we prove that for arbitrary k ≥ 9 this bound is sharp for infinitely many values of g.