The minimal degeneration singularities in the affine Grassmannians

The minimal degeneration singularities in the affine Grassmannians of simple simply-laced algebraic groups are determined to be either Kleinian singularities of type A, or closures of minimal orbits in nilpotent cones. The singularities for non-simply-laced types are studied by intersection cohomology and equivariant Chow group methods.