On the orbit space of a maximal compact subgroup on a spherical homogeneous variety

Abstract: Let $X=G/H$ be a spherical homogeneous variety for a complex reductive algebraic group $G$. We prove that the orbit space of $X$ under the action of a maximal compact subgroup $K\subset G$ is homeomorphic to the valuation cone of $X$. We also discuss the relation between the orbit type stratification of the orbit space and the face stratification of the valuation cone.