The kissing number problem asks for the maximal number k(n) of equal size nonoverlapping spheres in n-dimensional space that can touch another sphere of the same size. This problem in dimension three was the subject of a famous discussion between Isaac Newton and David Gregory in 1694. In three dimensions the problem was finally solved only in 1953 by Sch¨tte and van der u Waerden. In this paper we present a solution of a long-standing problem about the kissing number in four dimensions. Namely, the equality k(4) = 24 is proved. The proof is based on a modification of.
