KENYATTA UNIVERSITY

INSTITUTE OF OPEN LEARNING

SMA 103
ANALYTICAL GEOMETRY

KAHIRI, J. M. K.

DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS

1
 CONTENTS

Chapter Page
Chapter 1
Coordinate System 1
Chapter 2
The Straight Line 11
Chapter 3
The Circle 25
Chapter 4
Parabola 40
Chapter 5
Ellipse 56
Chapter 6
Hyperbola 68
Chapter 7
Polar Coordinates 77
Solutions and Answers to Exercises 89

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Introduction

Analytical geometry is the study of geometry by application of algebraic methods through the
coordinate system. This involves changing a geometric problem into an algebraic problem so that
it obeys certain rules of algebra. This module offers elementary techniques for solving
geometrical problems analytically for undergraduates in mathematics and engineering students.
In chapter 1, the coordinate system is covered. This also includes the study of distance between
points and the locus of a point.
Chapter 2 covers the straight line and the various forms of its equation.
Chapter 3 deals with the circle, its relationship with lines and other circles on a plane.
Chapters 4, 5 & 6, deal with the conic sections. The concept of focus, directrix and tangent to the
parabola, hyperbola and ellipse is introduced.
Chapter 7 deals with the polar coordinates. The equations of a circle, line, parabola, hyperbola
and ellipse are considered in polar form.

Kahiri,J.M.K
Department of Mathematics
Kenyatta University

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 Chapter 1:The Coordinate System

1.0 Introduction

In this chapter, the Cartesian coordinate system is introduced. The distance between points and
points which divide a line segment internally and externally are covered. The locus of a point as
well as the equation of a locus is also covered. The general, point slope and normal form of the
equation of the straight line are covered. Also covered is the relationship between lines.

Objectives

By the end of this chapter, students should be able to:

(a) Find the distance between two points.

(b) Find the point that divides a line segment internally into a given ratio.
(c) Find the point that divides a line segment externally into a given ratio.
(d) Plot the locus of a point given the equation of the locus.
(e) Find the equation of locus given the geometrical condition under which the point
moves.

1.1 The Cartesian plane

In this work the geometrical problems considered are those that are presented on two
dimensional plane only and it is therefore important at this point discuss the plane.
Consider any plane with a point denoted by O, which we call the point of reference or the
origin. Let line X’X be horizontal and pass through O and line Y’Y be vertical and pass through
O. The horizontal line X’X is referred to as the x-axis and the vertical line Y’Y is the y-axis.
Distance measured from the y-axis is referred to as an abscissa and it is positive if measured to
the right and negative if measured to the left. A vertical distance from the x-axis is called a y-
ordinate and it is positive if measured above the x-axis and negative if measured below the x-
axis. Any point on the plane can described by its abscissa and its ordinate as P(x,y), for any point
P. The symbol (x,y) represents the coordinates of the point, where x is the abscissa and y the
ordinate and it is also referred to as the Cartesian coordinates of P.
The two axis partitions the plane into four quadrants as shown below. In the first quadrant
both x and y are positive. In the second quadrant x is negative while y is positive. In the third
quadrant both x and y are negative. In the fourth quadrant x is positive and y negative. The
coordinates of the origin are (0,0).

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 Quad II Y Quad I
x P(x,y)
(-,+)
(+,+)
y

X’ O X

(-,-) (+,-)

Quad III Quad IV

Figure1.1

1.2 Distance between two points

Let A( x1 , y1 ) and B( x 2 , y 2 ) be any two points on the Cartesian plane. Denote the distance
between them by d AB .
y
B( x2 , y 2 )

Q
A( x1 , y1 )

O x

Figure1.2

Since AQ  x 2  x1 , QB  y 2  y1 and AQB a right triangle, then

d AB  ( x 2  x1 ) 2  ( y 2  y1 ) 2 ) 

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Example 1.1
Find the distance between the points A(7,9) and B (4,5) .

Solution:
Since x1  7, x 2  4 , y1  9 and y 2  5 , the distance between the points is

d AB  ( x 2  x 2 ) 2  ( y 2  y1 ) 2   (11) 2

 (4) 2  137  11.705

Example 1.2

Find the distance between the points A(6,0) and B (14,0) .

Solution:
Since x1  6, x 2  14 , y1  0 and y 2  0 , the distance between the points is

d AB  ( x 2  x 2 ) 2  ( y 2  y1 ) 2   (8) 2

 (0) 2  64  8

1.3 Points dividing a line segment

Let A ( x 1 , y 1 ) and B( x 2 , y 2 ) be any two points on a line segment and R ( x, y ) be any point
between them such the ratio AR : RB  m : n . To get the coordinates of R, consider points Q1
and Q2 such that AQR and RQB are right angled triangles (figure below).

y B( x2 , y 2 )

R ( x, y )
Q2

A ( x1 , y 1 ) Q1

x
O

Figure1.3

Thus

AQ1 Q1 R m
 
RQ2 Q2 B n

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But AQ1  x  x1 and RQ2  x 2  x

x  x1 m nx1  mx2
  x
x2  x n mn

Similarly Q1 R  y  y1 and Q2 B  y 2  y which gives

y  y1 m ny1  my 2
  y .
y2  y n mn

Hence the point which divides the line segment AB into the ratio m:n is

nx1  mx2 ny1  my2

R( , ) ………………….………(1)
mn mn

The midpoint is obtained by putting m  n  1

Hence the midpoint is

x1  x 2 y1  y 2
R( , ).
2 2

Example 1.3 Find the coordinates of the point that divides the line segment joining points
A(7,-5) and b(-8,4) into the ratio 1:2.

Solution: Let the point be R ( x, y ) . Since the ratio is 1:2, then m=1 and n=2. Substituting in (1)
gives

nx1  mx2 2 X 7  8 6
x   2
mn 3 3

and

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 ny1  my 2 2 X (5)  4  6
y    2
mn 3 3

implying the point is R (2,2) .

Exercise Find the point that divides the line segment joining the points A(9,-12) and B(-12,15)
into the ratio 4:3.

1.4 Points dividing a line segment externally

Suppose the point R ( x, y ) divides the line segment joining A ( x 1 , y 1 ) and B( x 2 , y 2 ) externally
such that AR : RB  m : n (see figure below)

n
m

B( x2 , y 2 ) Q3

A ( x1 , y 1 ) Q1 Q2
x
O

Figure1.4.

From the diagram,

AQ2 x  x1 m mx 2  nx1
   x
BQ3 x  x 2 n mn

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Similarly,

Q2 R y  y1 m my 2  ny1
   y .
Q3 R y  y 2 n mn
The point is therefore
 mx  nx1 my 2  ny1 
R 2 , 
 mn mn 

Example 1.4 Find the point that divides externally the line segment joining points
(i) A(1,1) and B(9,9) into the ratio 4:1
(ii) A(4,-7) and B(-5,10) into the ratio 3:2.
(iii) A(1,1) and B(9,9) into the ratio 1:4

Solution
mx2  nx1 4  9  1 35
(i) The coordinates are x    ,
mn 3 3
and

my2  ny1 4  9  1 35
y  
mn 3 3
and hence the point is R (35 / 3,35 / 5)
mx2  nx1 3  (5)  2  4  23
(ii) The coordinates are x    23
mn 3 2 1

and

my2  ny1 3  10  2  (7) 16

y    16
mn 3 2 1
and hence the point is R(-23,16).

mx2  nx1 1 7  4  1 3
(iii) The coordinates are x     1 ,
mn 1 4 3
and

my 2  ny1 1 7  4  1 3
y    1
mn 1 4 3
and hence the point is R(-1,-1).

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Examples (i) and (iii) show that the position of the division point R(x,y) in relation to the
points A ( x 1 , y 1 ) and B( x 2 , y 2 ) is dependent on the ratio m:n as in example (i). If
mn then R is next to B externally and if mn, R is next to A externally as in example
(iii).

Exercise 1.1

1. Find the distance between the following pairs of points:-

(a) (8,3) and (2,7)
(b) (-2,9) and (10,12)
(c) (6,9) and (16,9)
(d) (4,3) and (-13,-20)

2. Find the lengths of the sides of the triangle whose vertices are:-
(a) (3,2) (4,8) and (6,1)
(b) (–1,1) (0,-9) and (2,2)
(c) (6,8) (-7,3) and (12,5)
(d) (0,2) (14,-8) and (-5,-1)

3. Find b so that the distance between (5,2b) and (8,6) is 5 units where b is a negative
Number.
4. Show that the following points lie on a straight line (2,7) (-2,15), (6,-1)
5. Find a so that the points (a,-4) (1,0) (3,9) and (-1,-2) form the vertices of a square.
6. Find the coordinates of the points, which divide the straight line joining the given
points internally in the given ratio.
(a) (-2,4), (7,-3) ratio 4:5
(b) (7,8), (12,15) ratio 3:2
(c) (-4,-1), (8,-3) ratio 6:5
(d) (2,9),(-4,2) ratio 5:7

7. Find the coordinates of the points which divides the line joining the two points
externally in the given ratio.
(a) (-2,1), (-5,5) ratio 3:2
(b) (4,7), (-12,13) ratio 8:3
(c) (9,-3), (4,4) ratio 2:1
(d) (6,-2), (-9,9) ratio 5:4
(e) 1,-6), (10,9) ratio 3:7

8. Find the point that divides the line segment joining the given points internally and
externally.
(a) A(-6,-9) and B(5,11) into the ratio 5:3
(b) A(-2,10) and B(8,2) into the ratio 3:7

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1.5 Locus of a point and equation of locus

Having studied the points on a plane, we now look at paths made by a moving point and how this
can be described in terms of the x and y coordinates.

Definition: The locus of a point is the path traced by the point as it moves under some given
geometrical condition.

Example 1.5 The locus of the point that moves such that the path it traces is at right angles with
y-axis and passes through the origin is the x-axis.

Example 1.6 The locus of the point that moves such that its distance from point, say, C
is a, is the circle with center C and radius a.

Definition: Equation of a locus is the mathematical function in x and y which is satisfied by all
points on the locus.

As an illustration, consider the locus of the point that moves such that its distance from point,
say, C (h, k ) , is a. To get the equation of the locus, let R ( x, y ) be any point on the locus. Then the
distance between the point and the center is given by

( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  a

This implies that the equation of circle with center C (h, k ) and radius a is
( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  a 2 .

Exercises 1.2

1 Find the equation of the locus of the point that moves such that its distance from point
A(3,1) is twice the distance from the point B (5,1) .
2 Point P moves such that its distance from points A(7,4) and B (7,4) are equal. Find the
equation of the locus.
3 Point Q moves such that its distance from the x-axis is thrice its distance from the y-axis.
Find the equation of the locus.
4 Find the equation of the locus of the point that moves such that its distance from point
A(1,1) is 4 units more than its distance from point B (5,2) .
5 Plot the locus of the equation
(a) 2 y  3 x  1  0
(b) y 2  8 x
(c) y 2  9  x 2

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Miscellaneous Exercises

1. Find the distance between the following pairs of points:-

(a) (-2,4) and (5,8)
(b) (13,-1) and (6,9)
(c) (6,9) and (9,20)
(d) (-18,38) and (7,-5)

2. Find the lengths of the sides of the triangle whose vertices are:-
(a) (-2,2) (6,6) and (9,-4)
(b) (–7,2) (9,-10) and (-3,4)
(c) (21,8) (-4,7) and (12,-3)
(d) (21,2) (10,-8) and (6,-6)

3. Find the coordinates of the points, which divide the straight line joining the given
points internally in the given ratio.
(a) (12,1), (0,3) ratio 3:5
(b) (1,9), (6,-5) ratio 3:4
(c) (-10,-4), (-8,3)ratio 1:4
(d) (11,12),(-6,7) ratio 5:3

4. Find the coordinates of the points which divides the line joining the two points
externally in the given ratio
(a) (7,5), (2,5) ratio 7:2
(b) (14,-7), (8,8) ratio 9:4
(c) (3,-2), (4,-8) ratio 3:7
(d) (-3,7), (-2,4) ratio 2:3
(e) 4,-5), (11,-5) ratio 8:7

5. Find the locus of a point which moves such that its distance from the x-axis is
thrice the distance from y-axis.
6. Find the locus of a point that moves such that its distance from (4,3) is
equivalent to distance from (7,8)
7. A point moves so that its distance from the y-axis is half its distance from the origin.
find the equation of locus.
8. Find the point that divides the line segment joining the given points internally and
externally.
(c) A(5,-2) and B(6,-8) into the ratio 2:3
(d) A(1,-5) and B(-8,7) into the ratio 7:3

8. Find the equation of the locus of the point that moves such that its distance from point
A(1,1) is 4 units more than its distance from point B (5,2) .

9. Plot the locus of the equation

(a) 6 x  2 y  3  0
(b) x 2  2 y

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 (c) x 2  y 2  8 x  20

Summary
In this chapter, have introduced the concept of points on the Cartesian plane and the locus of a
point. We have shown how to

(1) Get the distance between two points,

(2) Get the coordinates of a point that divides a line segment onto a given ratio.
(3) Plot the locus of a point given the equation of the locus.
(4) Find the equation of locus given the geometrical condition under which the point
moves

Further Reading

1 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
2 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
3 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

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 Chapter 2: The straight Line
2.0 Introduction

In this chapter the general, point slope and normal form of the equation of the straight line are
covered. Also covered is the relationship between lines.

Objectives

By the end of this chapter, students should be able to:

(a) Write the general, point slope and the normal form of the equation of a straight line.
(b) Find the angle between two lines.
(c) Find the distance between a point and a line.

2.1 The Slope and inclination of a line

In the last chapter we have referred to line segment joining two points say A and B. Through any
two points a unique line passes and it extends to infinity from both ends of the line segment AB.
Another way of defining a straight line is the locus of all points R(x,y) such that the angle
between AR and the x-axis is a constant say  (see figure below)
In this chapter, the points and lines on the Cartesian plane are treated. The various forms of the
equation of a line are considered as well as the relationships between lines.

R
y B( x2 , y 2 )

A ( x1 , y 1 )


O x
l
l

Figure2.1

The inclination of a line is the positive angle (measured anticlockwise) the line makes with the x-
axis. For instance, the inclination of the line is .

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To establish the unique relationship of all points on a line the notion of the slope is applied.
Consider the two points A ( x 1 , y 1 ) and B( x 2 , y 2 ) on line l in the figure above. The slope of line
l is the ratio of change in y to the change in x as point R(x,y) moves from A to B. Thus, the slope
denoted by m is

y 2  y1
m .
x 2  x1

Note that the slope of a line is the trigonometric ratio of angle  given by
y  y1
tan   m  2
x 2  x1
If the line is vertical, the slope is undefined.
Example 2.1
15  8 7
Consider the line through (3,8) and (3,15). The slope is m   . This is undefined.
33 0

Example 2.2

Find the slope of the line passing through points A ( 2 ,  7 ) and B (9,26) .

Solution
The slope is

y 2  y1 26  7 33 
m     3
x 2  x1 9  2  11

Exercises 2.1

1. Find the slope of the line if defined of the straight line through each pair of points
(a) (-3,8) and (2,1)
(b) (14,7) and (2,4)
(c) (-7,7) and (0,8)
(d) (-12,-9) and (5,0)
(e) (10,3) and (-10,-3)
(f) (2,9) and (2,11)

2. Find  a  so that the slope m of the line through the two points is as given.
(a) (4,-3) and (3,9) m=5
(b) (6- a ,2) and (-1,2) m=-4
(c) (2a,4) and (-7,9a) m=3
a. (3+2a,5a) and 1,2a-1) m=-3
b. (3a,2) and (2,9) m=9

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2.2 Equation of straight line

Three forms of the equation of a straight line are considered here, namely, point-slope form, the
general equation, and the normal equation.

2.2.1 Point-slope form.

Let P1 ( x 1 , y 1 ) and P2 ( x 2 , y 2 ) be two points on line l such that the slope of the line is m. Let
P ( x , y ) be any other point on the line. Then
y  y1
m .
x  x1
This implies
y  y1  m( x  x1 ) ,
or
y  mx  y1  mx1
or
y  mx  c ,
where c  y1  mx1 .

Example 2.3
Find the equation of the line through points P1 ( 7 , 3 ) and P2 (  11 , 9 ) .
Solution
The slope of the line is

93 1
m   .
11  7 3

Let P ( x , y ) be any other point on the line. Then

y  3 1

x7 3
which reduces to


1 16
y x .
3 3
Example 2.4
Determine whether the points (  7 , 65 ) and ( 5 , 23 ) lie on the line through point (3,5) whose
slope is 9.

Solution

Let P ( x , y ) be any other point on the line. Then

y 5
9,
x3

16
or
y  9 x  22
is the equation of the line. Substituting the x coordinate of point (  7 , 65 ) in the line equation
gives y   85 . The point therefore does not lie on the line.

Now, substituting the x coordinate of point ( 5 , 23 ) in the line equation gives y  23 . The point
therefore does lies on the line.

2.2.2 Intercepts.

Intercepts on the xy plane are the directed distances from the origin to the point of intersection of
the line and the coordinate axes. The y-intercept of a line is the directed distance from the origin
to the point of intersection with the y-axis. At this point the x coordinate is zero. Substituting x=0
in the equation y  mx  c gives y  c . This implies that when the equation of a line is in point-
slope form, c gives the y-intercept.

To get the x-intercept, substitute y=0 in the equation and solve for x.

Example 2.5
Find the y and the x intercepts for the line through points (  3,  28) and (7,52) .

Solution
The slope of the line is
52  28
m  8.
73
Let P ( x , y ) be any other point on the line. Then
y  28
 8,
x3
which reduces to
y  8x  4 .
Put x=0 to get the y-intercept as  4 . Similarly put y=0 to get the x-intercept as 1 .
2

Exercises 2.2
1. Find the point slope form of the equation of the line which passes through the given point and
given slope.
(a) (1,7) m=4
2
(b) (-1,-2) m=
5
7
(c) (9,-3) m=
6
(d) (12,1) m=-5

17
 3
(e) (4,-7) m=
7
2.Find the equation in point slope form of the line passing through the given point.
c. (-2,-8) and (4,2)
d. (3,2) and (–6,5)
e. (10,1) and (-3,-7)
f. (-6,7) and (-11,-8)
g. (-35,6) and (-21,-43)
3.Find the equation of the line with intercept a on x-axis and intercept b on y-axis.
(a) a=2 b=-3
(b) a=-10 b=-10
2 1
(c) a= b=
5 3
2 5
(d) a= b=
3 8
3
(e) a=-7 b=
7

2.3 General Equation of a Line

The general equation of a line is given as Ax  By  C  0 where A, B and C arbitrary numbers

with the exception that A and B cannot be zeros simultaneously. Note that the value C in the
general equation is different from the c in the point-slope form. By making y the subject the point
–slope form is obtained from the general form as
A C
y x
B B
A C
Hence the slope is m  and the y-intercept is .
B B

Example 2.6
Find the general equation of the line through (-8,5) and (21,16).

Solution
16  5 11
First get the slope of the line which is m   . For any point P ( x , y ) on the line
21  8 29
y  5 11
 .
x  8 29
This reduces to
11x  29 y  233  0

18
2.4 Normal Equation of a Line

The normal equation of a line is given in terms of the distance of the line from the origin and the
angle of inclination of the line perpendicular to the line through the origin. Consider (Fig below)

P1 ( x 1 , y 1 )


w x
O

Figure2.2: Line at distance p from origin.

Suppose the distance from the origin to the line is p. Let P1 ( x 1 , y 1 ) be the point on the line such
the line through O and P1 ( x 1 , y 1 ) is perpendicular to l. From trigonometric ratios, we get
x1  p cos w and y1  p sin w .
The slope of line through O and P1 ( x 1 , y 1 ) is
p sin w
m2  .
p cos w
The slope of l is therefore
 1  p cos w  cos w
m   .
m2 p sin w sin w

Let P ( x , y ) be any other point on line l. The equation of line l is

y  y1  cos w
 ,
x  x1 sin w
or
 cos w
y  p sin w  ( x  p cos w) ,
sin w

19
which reduces to
x cos w  y sin w  p  0 .
This is the normal equation of a line.

Example 2.7
Find the normal equation of the line with p=8 and w=30.

Solution
Substitute the given values of p and w in (eq) to get
x cos 30  y sin 30  7  0
or
3 1
x  y  7  0.
2 2

2.5 General to Normal form

Let the general form and the normal form of the equation of line l be Ax  By  C  0 and
x cos w  y sin w  p  0 respectively. The corresponding coefficients in the two equations are
equal or proportional. Hence
cos w sin w  p
  k
A B C

cos w  kA, sin w  kB, p  kC .
Squaring and adding the first two gives
cos 2 w  sin 2 w  k 2 ( A 2  B 2 )  1 .

1
k .
 A2  B 2
The sign of the radical is taken opposite that of C, and if C=0, it should be the same as that of B.
If B=C=0, the sign should be same as that of A.

Example 2.8
Find the general and normal equations to the line through point (2,5) and (3,7).

Solution
75
The slope of the line is m   2 . Let P ( x , y ) be any other point on line l. Then
32
y 5
 2 . The general equation is 2 x  y  1  0 . This gives A=2, B   1 and C=1.
x2
2 1 1
The radical is therefore  A 2  B 2   5 . Also cos w  , sin w  and  p  .
5 5 5
The normal equation is
2 y 1
x   0.
5 5 5

20
Exercise 2.3
1. Find the following equation of lines in the normal form.
(a) y=7x+3
(b) 5y+6x-3=0
(c) 3x-9y+5=0
(d) x-4y-1=0
(e) x+8=0
(f) y-12=0
(g) 6x-7y=0
2. Find the general and normal equation of the line through the given points.
(a) (2,5) and (6,-1)
(b) (0,3) and (-9,1)
(c) (6,8) and (-4,7)
(d) (7,-8) and (10,0)
(e) (-11,11) and (2,-5)

2.5 Angle between two lines

Consider two lines l1 and l 2 whose inclinations are 1 and  2 (Fig below). Their slopes are
respectively m1  tan 1 and m2  tan 2 . The angle between the lines is  2 1 and from
compound angle formula,
tan  2  tan  1 m  m1
tan( 2   1 )   2
1  tan  1 tan  2 1  m1 m2

y-axis l2

 2 1 l1

2
1 x-axis
O

Figure2.3: Lines with angle  2 between them.

21
Example 2.9
Find the angle between the lines y=2x+5 and y=12x-1.

Solution
The slopes of the respective lines are m1  2 and m2  12 . Therefore
m  m1 10
tan( 2   1 )  2  .
1  m1 m2 25
The angle is therefore arctan(10 / 25)  21.8 o .

2.6 Perpendicular lines

Two lines are said to be perpendicular if the angle between them is 90 o . If the slope of a given
line is m1 , then the slope of any line perpendicular to the given line is
1
m2  .
m1
To show this, consider the two perpendicular lines l1 and l 2 with slopes m1 and m2 respectively
(Figure 2.4).
CB AB
The slope of l1 from the fig is m1  and that of l 2 is m2  . Now, triangles ABD and
BD BD
DBC are similar and hence
___ ___
AB BD
___
 __
.
BD CB
Considering directed distances, note that the change in y as point A moves to B is negative while
the change is positive as C moves to B. The change in x is positive as B moves to D. Hence
AB BD  1
   m2
BD CB m1

22
 A

l2

l1

D
B

Figure2.4: Perpendicular lines

Example 2.10

Find the equation of the line perpendicular to the line y=5x-9 and passes through point (1,14).

Solution
The slope of the line is
1 1
m2   .
m1 5
Let P ( x , y ) be any other point on the line. Then
y  14  1
 ,
x 1 5
1 71
which reduces to y  x .
5 5

Exercises 2.4

1.Find the angle between the lines whose equations are as given.
(a) y=2x-3 and y=5x+2
(b) y=-6x+5 and y=x-8
4
(c) y=7x-2 and y= x+11
3
(d) y=5 and y=5x
(e) y=-3x and y=-3x+7

23
 2 5
(f) y= x and y= x  8
5 2
2.Find the angle between the lines, which pass through the respective, given points.
(a) l1 : (2,8) and (7,3) l 2 : (3,6) and (-6,0)
(b) l1 : (-3,2) and (-1,7) l 2 : (7,3) and (2,5)
(c) l1 : (4,4) and (6,9) l 2 : (-5,7) and (-3,12)
(d) l1 : (9,8) and (-1,2) l 2 : (2,4) and (7,3)

2.7 Distance from a point to a line

The distance from a point to a line is the length of the line segment perpendicular to the line,
from the point to the line.
Suppose we wish to get the distance from point A(m, n) to line l. Let l1 be another line
through A and parallel to l. Let d be the distance from A to l.

p
d A( m, n)

x
O l1
l

l '1

Figure2.5: Distance between a point and a line.

Since the normal equation of l is x cos w  y sin w  p  0 , the normal equation of l1 is

x cos w  y sin w  ( p  d )  0 if l1 is further away from the origin than l. Point A(m, n) is on
l1 and hence m cos w  n sin w  ( p  d )  0 . The distance is
d  m cos w  n sin w  p .

24
Suppose that line l1 is closer to the origin than line l which implies the position of the line is now
l '1 . The equation of l '1 is x cos w  y sin w  ( p  d )  0 . Hence
 d  m cos w  n sin w  p .
The sign of d indicates the position of the line through A(m, n) and parallel to l. If the line and
the origin lie on the same side of l, the sign is negative. If they lie on the opposite sides, the sign
is positive.

Example 2.11
Find the distance from the point (4,-9) to the line x cos 60  y sin 60  5  0 and state the position
of the point in relation to the line and the origin.

Solution
The distance is
d  4 cos 60  9 sin 60  5  0.79 .
This implies the point and the origin lie on the same side.

Now consider the general equation Ax  By  C  0 . To get the distance from the point
P( x1 , y1 ) to the line, first obtain the normal equation of the line as
Ax By C
  0.
A B
2 2
A B
2 2
A B
2 2

The perpendicular distance from the point P( x1 , y1 ) is therefore

Ax  By1  C
d 1 .
A2  B 2

Example 2.12
Find the distance from point P (2,3) to the line 8 x  15 y  24  0 .

Solution
The normal equation of the line is
8x 15 y 24
   0.
8  15
2 2
8  15
2 2
8  15 2
2

The distance is therefore

8(2)  15(3)  24
d
8 2  15 2
=-5.
Exercises 2.4
2. Find the distance from the given point to the given line and state the position of the point
in relation to the line and origin.
(a) (2,3); y=8+4x
(b) (-3,6); 5x-2y-2=0
(c) (1,-7); x-y+7=8
(d)(10,-11); -3x+5y-9=0

25
 (e) (-1,5); 7x+6y-30=0
3. Let Q be a point which is equidistance from the lines 4y=2x-3 and y-3x-4=0.Determine
the locus of Q.

Miscellaneous Exercises

1. Find the slope of the line through the given points

1 1   2 1
(a)  ,  and  , 
 2 3  7 9 
 4  3 1 
(b)  ,  and  ,2 
 9 10  6 
 8 2  1
(c)  ,  and  4, 
 11 7   3 
 9  9
(d) 12,  and  8, 
 7   14 
(e) 9,2  and (-2,-9)
2. Find the general and normal equation of the line through the given points.
(a) (7,3) and (-1,5)
1 1
(b) (6,-8) and  , 
2 2
(c) (2,7) and (-7,3)
(d) (2,-1) and (-1,-1)
(e) (5,7) and (5,12)
3. Find the point slope form of the equation through the given point and corresponding
slope.
(a) (3,-2) m =-5
  11 12  2
(b)  ,  m=
 2 11  7
7
(c) (12,7) m=
2
3
(d) (6,6) m=
5
(e) (18,-15) m =2
4. Find the angle between the given lines.
(a) 5 x  8 y  3  0; 2x  4 y  0
(b) x  3 y  2  0;  x  4y  2  0
(c) x  8  0; y 9  0
(d) 2 x  3 y  0;  7x  3y  0
(e) 3 x  4 y  2; 4x  3y  4

26
 5. Find the distance from the point to the given line.
(a) (4,8) ; y  2x  7
(b) (0,0) ; 3y  2x  5
(c) (-7,-2) ; x 8  0
(d) (3,10); y  2x  0
(e) (-5,-3); 4y  3  0
6. Find the point of intersection of the given lines, if they intersect.
(a) 3 x  7 y  22  0 , y  x3 0
(b) 8 x  9 y  2  0 , x  3y  6  0
1 1
(c) x  y  1  0 , x3 0
2 3
1
(d) 4 y  19  0, y  x  10  0
3

Summary
In this chapter, have introduced the concept of points on the Cartesian plane and the straight line.
We have shown how to

(1) Determine the general, point-slope and normal form of the equation of a straight
line,
(2) Determine the angle between two lines,
(3) Find the distance form a point to a line.

Further Reading

1 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
2 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
3 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

27
 Chapter 3:THE CIRCLE
3.0 Introduction

In this chapter we study the circle and relationships between circles. A circle is the locus of a
point which moves such that its distance from a fixed point is constant. The fixed point is called
the center of the circle The distance from the point is called the radius.

Objectives
At the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:-
(a) Determine the standard and the general equation of a circle given its:-
(i) Radius and the centre.
(ii) Any three points the circle passes through.
(b) Find the tangent and the normal to a circle through a given point on the circle.
(c) Find the tangents from a given point to a circle.
(d) Determine whether circles are orthogonal.

3.1 Equation of a circle

We now consider the various forms of equations of a circle.

3.1.1 Standard Equation of circle

Consider a circle with center C (h, k ) and radius r (Fig )

P ( x, y )

x
O
Figure 3.1

From the definition of the circle

___
CP  r  ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2 .
Hence tha equation of the circle is

28
 ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  r 2 .
If the center of the circle is at the origin the equation is

x2  y2  r 2 .
Example3.1
Find the equation of the circle with center C (0,0) and radius r=7.

Solution
Substitute the coordinates of the center in (eq) to get
x 2  y 2  49 .

3.1.2 General Equation of a circle

Expanding the equation ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  r 2 we get

x 2  y 2  2hx  2ky  h 2  k 2  r 2  0 .
This can be written as
x 2  y 2  Dx  Ey  C  0
where D  2h, E  2k and C  h 2  k 2  r 2 . Equation () is called the general equation of the
circle.
If the equation of a circle is given in general form the center and the radius can be obtained by
completing the squares as
D E D 2  E 2  4C
(x  )2  ( y  )2  .
2 2 4
D E
This is the equation of a circle with center C ( , ) and radius
2 2
r  1 D 2  E 2  4C .
2
Note the following
(a) If D 2  E 2  C  0 , then the equation represents a point which coincides with the center
D E
C( , ).
2 2
(b) If D 2  E 2  C  0 , then the radius is imaginary. The circle is referred to as a virtual
circle.
(c) If D 2  E 2  C  0 , then the circle is real.

Example 3.2
Find the center and radius of the circle x 2  y 2  4 x  10 y  2  0 .

29
Solution
From the equation D  4, E  10 and C  2 . Hence the center is C (2,5) . The radius is

r1 D 2  E 2  4C
2
1
 16  100  8
2

 31

Exercise 3.1
1.Find the equation of the circle whose centre and radius are as given.
(a) Center (0,0), radius r 8
(b) Center (-3,4), radius r2
(c) Center (-11,-3) radius r 5
1 1 2
(d) Center  ,  radius r
3 2 3

2. Find the center and the radius of the circle given by the equation and state whether real, a
point or imaginary.
(a) x 2  y 2  12 x  6 y  7  0
(b) x 2  y 2  2 x  3 y  5  0
(c) x 2  y 2  10 x  6 x  34  0
(d) x 2  4 x  8 y  41  0
(e) x 2  y 2  x  y  3  0
3. Find the equation of the circle through the given points.
(a) (1,2) (3,7) (2,-3)
(b) (-7,3) (1,1) (-3,4)
(c) (2,5) (9,8) (1,-10)
(d) (-1,1) (2,-3) (7,-7)
(e) (2,4) (5,9) (8,14)
4. Sketch the graphs,
(a) x 2  y 2  3 x  5 y  2  0
(b) x 2  y 2  8 x  6 y  3  0
(c) 4 x 2  4 y  2 x  10 y  1  0
(d) x 2  y 2  16  0

30
3.2 Position of a point in relation to a circle

If point P (a, b) lies on the circle x 2  y 2  r 2 , then a 2  b 2  r 2 . If it lies inside the circle,
then a 2  b 2  r 2 and if it lies outside the circle then a 2  b 2  r 2 . Similarly, if P (a, b) lies on
the circle ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  r 2 , then
(a  h) 2  (b  k ) 2  r 2 .
If the point is inside the circle, then
(a  h) 2  (b  k ) 2  r 2
and if outside then
(a  h) 2  (b  k ) 2  r 2 .

Example 3.3
Determine whether the point P (4,5) lies on, inside or outside the circle x 2  y 2  35 .

Solution
Substitute the coordinates in the equation to get
4 2  5 2  31  35 .
The point therefore lies inside the circle.

3.3 Distance from a point to a circle

Consider point P1 (a1 , b1 ) outside the circle ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  r 2 . Let B1 be a point on the
circle such that it lies on the line segment P1C , C being the center of the circle.

y P1 (a1 , b1 )

B2 B1

P2
C x

x
O

Figure 3.2

31
 ____
The distance from P1 (a1 , b1 ) to the circle is P1 B1 which is obtained as
____ ____ ____
P1 B1  P1C  B1C
= (a1  h) 2  (b1  k ) 2  r
Now consider point another P2 (a 2 , b2 ) inside the circle lying on the line segment CB2 . The
distance from P2 (a 2 , b2 ) to the circle is
____
P2 B2  r  (a 2  h) 2  (b2  k ) 2 .

In general, the distance d from point P (a, b) to circle ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  r 2 is

d  (a  h) 2  (b  k ) 2  r
with d positive if the point is outside the circle and negative if inside the circle.

Example 3.4
Find the distance from the point P (5,8) to the circle x 2  y 2  2 x  6 y  3  0 .

Solution
The center of the circle is C (1,3) . The radius of the circle is
r  1 D 2  E 2  4C
2
1
 16  36  12
2

 7

Hence the distance is

d  (5  1) 2  (8  3) 2  7
= 9.88

Exercise 3.2
1. Find the distance from the point to the circle and state whether the point is outside,
inside or on the circle.
(a) (8,7) to x 2  y 2  12 x  5 y  3  0
(b) (4,-3) to x 2  y 2  6x  6 y  5  0
(c) (-7,6) to 3x 2  3 y 2  6 x  5 y  1  0
(d) (1,1) to 2 x2  2y2 1  0
(e) –6,10) to x 2  y 2  16 x  20 y  160  0

32
2. Find the equation of the circle with the given center and radius.
(a) C (0,7) r =3
(b) C (1,-8) r =10
(c) C (-7,0) r =0
1 1 9
(d) C ( , ) r =
4 5 2

3. Find the center and radius of the circle whose equation is and state whether real or
imaginary
(a) x 2  y 2  6 x  12 y  4  0
(b) x 2  y 2  4 x  8 y  20  0
(c) x 2  y 2  7 x  2 y  6  0
(d) 4 x 2 4 y 2  10 y  8 y  12  0

4. Find the equation of the circle through the given points.

a. (2,1) (3,2) (4,5)
b. (-3,2) (1,7) (-1,-3)
c. (0,2) (5,3) (2,-4)

5. Find the distance from the point A to the given circle and state whether it lies inside, on
the circle or outside if,
(a) A (2,3), x 2  y 2  8 x  10 y  7  0
(b) A (-17,12) x 2  y 2  x  y  1  0
(c) A (-10,10) x 2  y 2  7 y  8  0

6. A circle passes through points (2,3) and (4,5) and its center is on the line 2x+3y=5. Find
the equation of the circle.

3.4 Tangent, secant, chord and normal

Definitions
Consider a circle with C ( h, k ) and radius r. The line AB through the circle intersecting with
the circle at the points A 1 and B 1 is called a secant. Any line segment joining the two points
on a circle is called a chord. For instance A 1 B1 is a chord. The chord through the center is
called a diameter of the circle.

33
 P (x,y)
A2 B2

A A1 B1 B

Figure 3.3

The line that has only a single point of contact with a circle is called the tangent to the circle at
that point of contact. In the figure above A 2 B2 is a tangent to the circle at point P(x,y).

The normal to the circle at point P is the line through P which is perpendicular to the tangent at
P. Example CP is a normal to the curve at P. The normal will always pass through the center of
the circle.

3.4.1 Equation of the tangent

There are various methods of obtaining the equation of the tangent to a circle at a given point
which may require application of differential calculus.
This is not considered, here we consider the following method. Consider the tangent AB
P ( x1 , y1 ) at point P on the circle whose equation is (x-h) 2 ( y  k ) 2 r

34
 P( x1 , y1 )
A B

Q( x 2 , y 2 )

Figure 3.4
Let point Q( x 2 , y 2 ) on the circle move along the circle towards P. As Q approaches P, the line
through P and Q approaches the tangent AP.
The equation of the line through P and Q is given by
y  y1 y 2  y1 y  y1
 , y-y 1 = (x-x 1 )  2 )
x  x1 x 2  x1 x 2  x1

y 2  y1
the slope of this line, m = approaches that of AP is therefore the limit of m as Q
x 2  x1
approaches P which is given by
y 2  y1 0
lim =
x 2  x1 0
QP

0
But is undefined. To get the limit, consider that the two points Q and P lie on the circle and
0
hence for P we have ( x1  h) 2  ( y1  k ) 2  r 2 (3.1)
For Q we have(x 2  h) 2  ( y 2  k ) 2  r 2 (3.2)
Subtracting (3.2) from (3.1)
We get (x 2  h) 2  ( x1  h) 2  ( y 2  k ) 2  ( y1  k ) 2  0
Or
(y 2  k ) 2  ( y1  k ) 2  ( x1  h) 2  ( x 2  h) 2
Or

35
 (y 2 k )  ( y1  k )  y 2 k )  ( y1  k )  = (x 1  h)  ( x 2  h)  (x 1  h)  ( x1  h) 
Or
(y 2  y1 )( y1  y 2  2k )  ( x1  x 2 )( x1  x 2  2h)
Or
y 2  y1 ( x  x 2  2h)
 1
x 2  x1 ( y1  y 2  2k )

taking the limits gives

Lim y  y1 (2 x1  2h) ( x  h)
( 2 )  1
QP x 2  x1 2 y1  2k ( y1  k )

( x1  h)
Hence the slope of the tangent at P(x 1 y1 ) is -
y1  k

Let P(x,y) be any other point on the tangent. The equation of the tangent is
y  y1 ( x1  h)

x  x1 ( y1  k )
Or
y (y 1  k )  y1 ( y1  k )  x( x1  h)  x1 ( x1  h)  0
Or
xx 1  yy1  hx  ky  hx1  ky1  x1  y1  0
2 2

But
x1  y1  r 2  2hx1  2ky1  h 2  k 2 From 2.0
2 2
hence the equation is
xx1  yy1  hx  hx1  ky  ky1  h 2  k 2  r 2  0 (3.3)
Or
xx1  yy1  h( x  x1 )  k ( y  y1 )  C  0 (3.4)

Note that equation 3.3 ca be written as

( x  h)( x1  h)  ( y  k )( y1  k )  r 2 (3.5)

Example 3.5

Find the tangent to the circle at the point P (7,12) if the equation has center C (4,8)

Solution
To get the tangent, first get the equation of the circle as follows. The radius of the circle is PC
given by
r  PC  (4  7) 2  (8  12) 2  5
Hence the equation of the circle is
( x  4) 2  ( y  8) 2  5
from 3.5 we get

36
 ( x  4)(7  4)  ( y  8)(12  8)  5
Or
3 x  12  4 y  32  5
Or
3 x  4 y  49

Example 3.6
Find the equation of the tangent to the circle x 2  y 2  10  6 y  66  0 at the point(3,-3)

Solution
The equation is obtained as follows:-
The center of the circle is C(-5,3) Hence 3 x  3 y  5( x  3)  3( y  3)  66  0
Or
8 x  6 y  42  0

The equation of the tangent to a circle through a given point can also be obtained if the center of
the circle is known. The tangent will be perpendicular to the normal which passes through the
given point on the circle.

Example 3.7

Find the equation of the tangent to the circle with center C(2,5) at point P(6,3) on the circle.

Solution

The slope of the normal that passes through P(6,3) is

35 1
m  .
62 2
The slope of the tangent at P is therefore
1
m1    2 .
m
Let R(x,y) be any other point on the tangent. Then
y 3
 2.
x6
Which reduces to
2x  y  9  0 .

3.4.2 Tangent to a circle from a given point

Let point P1 ( x1 y1 ) be a point outside the circle ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2  r 2 . Let point D( m, n ) be the

point on the circle such that the line through P1 and D is a tangent to the circle.The problem is to
determine the coordinates of D, m and n .

37
Since D( m, n ) is on the circle, the equation of the tangent is
(m  h)( x1  h)  (n  k )( y1  k )  r 2
Or
m( x1  h)  n( y1  k )  r 2  h( x1  h)  k ( y1  k )
Or
ma  nb  q 3.6
This is a single equation with two unknowns and hence another equation in m and n is required
to be able to go for m and n.
Since D (m, n) is on the circle, we have
( m  h) 2  ( n  k ) 2  r 3.7
q  ma
Put n 
b
Substituting in 3.7 we get
q  ma
( m  n)  (  k)2  r
b

This is a quadratic equation in m and applying the usual solution techniques of quadratic
equations, there will be two possible values of m say m1 and m2 . This implies there will be two
possible values of n as n1 and n2 . Hence there are two points say D1 (m1 , n1 ) and D2 (m2 , n2 ) on
the circle to which from P1 ( x1 , y1 ) to the circle can be drawn.

D1 (m1 , n1 )

P1 ( x1 , y1 )
C(h,k)

D2 ( m 2 , n 2 )

Figure 3.5

38
Remark
The chord through D1 and D2 is called the chord of contact of tangents from the point P1 ( x1 , y1 )
with respect to the given circle.

Example 3.7
Find the tangent points of the circle x 2  y 2  5 from the point (8,3)

Solution
Let (m, n) be the points on the circle and on the tangent
Then
mx  ny  5  8m  3n  5 and m2  n2  5
5  8m (5  8m) 2
put n then m 2  5
3 9
or
9m 2  64m 2  80m  25  45
or
73m 2  80m  20  0
80  80 2  80  73
m  1.33 or –0.21
146

5  8  1.33
If m  1.33, n   1.88
3

5  8  0.21
If m  0.21, n   2.23
3
Hence the two points on the circle are
D1 (1.33,1.88) and D2 (0.21,2.23)

Remark
The equation of the chord of contact can be easily obtained the moment D1 and D2 are obtained.

Example 3.8
Find the points on the circle x 2  y 2  12 x  4 y  15  0 through which the tangents from the
point P1 (1,3) pass. Also find the equation of the chord of contact.

Solution
Let D (m, n) be a point on the circle. The equation of the circle can be written as
( x  6) 2  ( y  2) 2  25 . The tangent through P1 (1,3) and through D (m, n) is
(m  6)(1  6)  (n  2)(3  2)  25

7 m  n  15  n  7 m  15
Since D (m, n) is on the circle, then

39
 (m  6) 2  (n  2) 2  25
or

(m  6) 2  (7 m  17) 2  25 .
Solving for m gives m=-2  n=1, or m=-3  n=-6. Hence the two points are D1 (3,6) and
D2 (2,1) . The equation of the chord through the two points is 7 x  y  15  0 .

3. 5 Intersection of two circles.

Consider two circles with respective general equations x 2  y 2  D1 x  E1 y  C1  0 and

x 2  y 2  D2 x  E 2 y  C 2  0 . At the points of intersection both equations are satisfied and
therefore

x 2  y 2  D1 x  E1 y  C1  x 2  y 2  D2 x  E 2 y  C 2 .
This gives
( D1  D2 ) x  ( E1  E 2 ) y  (C  C 2 )  dx  ey  c  0 ,

which the equation of a line. The points of intersection lie on this line. Making y the subject and
substituting in any of the circle equations and solving will give the coordinates of the points.

Example 3.9
Find the points of intersection of the circles x 2  y 2  4 x  6 y  12  0 and
x 2  y 2  8 x  2 y  19  0 . Equating the two equations gives the linear equation 4 x  4 y  7  0
or y  x  7 / 4 . Substituting in the first equation we get the quadratic equation
32 x 2  104 x  311  0 . Hence
104  50624
x .
64

This finally gives the points of intersection as ( ) and ( ).

3.6 Orthogonal circles

Consider two circles, which intersect. The circles are said to be orthogonal if their respective
tangents at the point of intersection are perpendicular to each other. From the diagram below,

40
 r1
r2
C1 C2

Figure 3.6

C1 PC 2 is right angled and C1C 2 = r1  r2

2 2 2

Hence if two circles are orthogonal, the square of the distance between their centers is equal to
the sum of squares of their radii.

Example 3.10
Show that the circles x 2  y 2  6 x  4 y  12  0 and x 2  y 2  20 x  4 y  40  0 are orthogonal.

Solution
The center of the first circle is (-3,2) and its radius is r1  36  16  48  5
1
The center of the second circle is (10,2) and radius is r2  400  16  160  12
2
The distance between the centers is d  13 2  0
Also r1  r2  5 2  12 2  13 2 ,
2 2
hence they are orthogonal.

Exercise 3.3

1.Find the equation of the circle whose diameter is the line joining the points given.
(a) (2,2) (7,9)
(b) (6,8) (12,1)
(c) (-3,1) (-1,-1)
(d) (8,4) (2,9)
(e) (7,10) (21,3)
2. Find the equation of the normal to the given circle at the given point.
(a) x 2  y 2  4 x  5 y  2  0 (1, 2 )
(b) 3 x  3 y  2 x  16 y  52  0 (4,6)
2 2

41
 (c) x 2  y 2  2 x  8 y  23  0 (3,-10)
(d) x  y  4 x  6 y  37  0
2 2
(3,4)
3. Find the equation of the tangents to the given circle from the given external point.
(a) x 2  y 2  10  0 (10,2)
(b) x  y  4 x  4 y  8  0
2 2
(3,2)
(c) 3 x  3 y  2 x  4 y  6  0
2 2
(5,-3)
(d) x  y  5 x  10 y  12  0
2 2
(-9,-6)
4. Find the equation of the normal to the given circle at the given point.
(a) x 2  y 2  18 x  16 y  120  0 (6,4)
(b) x 2  y 2  6 x  10 y  9  0 (1,8)
(c) x  y  2 x  14 y  119  0
2 2
(6,5)
(d) x  y  12 x  4 y  60  0
2 2
(2,-4)

Miscellaneous Exercises

1. Find the standard equation of the circle whose center and radius are as given.
(a) Center (0,0), radius r=10
(b) Center (6,5), radius r=3
(c) Center (-2,0), radius r=8
(d) Center (-13,13), radius r=13

2. Find the general equation of the circle whose center and radius are as given.
(a) Center (1, -9), radius r=4
(b) Center (-8,0), radius r=10
(c) Center (a, 12), radius r=a-3
(d) Center (-17,17), radius r= 17

3. Find the equation of the circle, which passes through the given points.
(a) A (1,2) B (3,2), C (5,2)
(b) A (-4, 0) B (8, 12) C (1, -1)
(c) A (10,-18) B(7,-3) C(2,-2)
(d) A (7,0) B (0,7) C(-2,0)

4. Find the center and the radius of the circle and state whether real or virtual.
(a) x 2  y 2  30
(b) x 2  y 2  8 x  12 y  3  0
(c) x 2  y 2  x  y  1  0
(d) 4 x 2  4 y 2  8 x  3 y  1  0
5. Determine whether the given point lies inside, outside or within the circle.
(a) P(2,2), x2  y2  9
(b) P(4,5) x 2  y 2  12 x  10 y  36  0

42
 (c) P(-12,1) x 2  y 2  20 x  10 y  7  0
(d) P(-3,7) x 2  y 2  12 x  25 y  8  0

6. Find the distance from the given point to the circle.

(a) P(1,1) x 2  y 2  20 x  18 y  180  0
(b) P(8,11) x2  y2  7  0
(c) P(-2,-6) x 2  y 2  16 x  10 y  40  0
(d) P(1,8) 4x 2  4 y 2  4x  8 y  5  0

7. Find the equation of the tangent on the given circle at the given point on the circle.
(a) x 2  y 2  2 x  6 y  3  0, P (2,5).
(b) x 2  y 2  10 x  4 y  24  0 , P (3,3).
(c) x 2  y 2  12 x  5 y  13  0 , P(6+23,0)
(d) x 2  y 2  4 x  6 y  37  0 , P(3,4)

8. Find the points on the circle whose tangents to the circle intersect at the given point in
question 6 above.

9. Find the points of intersection of the circles given if they intersect.

(a) x 2  y 2  4 x  6 y  13  0, and x 2  y 2  25  0,
(b) x 2  y 2  7 x  8 y  36  0, and x 2  y 2  24 x  26 y  312  0,

Summary
In this chapter we have discussed the circle where we have shown how to:
(a) Determine the general and standard equation of a circle.
(b) Find the tangent and the normal to a circle at a given point on the circle.
(c) Find the tangents to a circle from a given external point.
(d) Find points of intersection of two circles.
(e) Find the distance from a point to a circle.

Further Reading

4 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
5 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
6 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

43
 Chapter 4: PARABOLA
4.0 Introduction
In the next three chapters we study the conic sections, the parabola, the ellipse and the hyperbola.
A conic section is the locus of a point described such that the ratio of its distance from a fixed
point to that from a fixed line is a constant. This ratio is called the eccentricity, denoted by e .
The fixed line is called the directrix and the fixed point the focus.

Definition: A parabola is the locus of a point which moves such that the ratio of its distance from
a fixed point to the distance from a fixed line is one.

Objectives
At the end of the chapter the students should be able to:-
(a) Find the standard and general equation ofa parabola given its focus and directrix.
(b) Find the tangent and the normal to the parabola at a given point on the parabola.
(c) Find the parametric equation of a parabola.

4.1 Standard equation of a parabola

Let the focus be denoted by F and the directrix be DM. The line passing through the focus and
perpendicular to the directrix is called the axis of the parabola (Fig 1). The point V where the
parabola intersects with the axis is called its vertex.
y

M P(x,y)

x
D V F(a,0)

Figure 4.1

To get the equation of the parabola, suppose the axis coincides with the x-axis and let the vertex
V be at the origin. Let the distance from the vertex to the focus be a . The focus is F( a ,0). From
the definition of the parabola,

PF
1 ,
MP

44
where P( x, y ) is any other point on the parabola. The distances PF and PM are

PF  ( x  a ) 2  y 2 and PM  x  a

.
Thus
( x  a) 2  y 2  x  a
which gives
( x  a) 2  y 2  ( x  a) 2
or
x 2  2ax  a 2  y 2  x 2  2ax  a 2
or
y 2  4ax .
This is the standard equation of a parabola whose axis is horizontal and the vertex is at the
origin. A chord (a line segment whose end points are points on the parabola) passing through the
focus F is referred to as the focal chord. The focal chord perpendicular to the axis is called the
latus rectum.

The distance of any point P(x,y) on the curve to the focus is referred to as its focal distance. The
length of the latus rectum is equal to 4a.

Example 4.1
Find the equation of the parabola whose focus is F(2,0) and the directrix is x =-2.

Solution
Since the focus is F(2,0) and the directrix is x =-2, then the vertex is at the origin and its axis is
the x-axis. Hence a=2. The equation is

y 2  4ax  8 x

Example 4.2
Find the focus, the equation of the directrix, the length of latus rectum for the parabola

5 y 2  24 x.

Solution
Write the equation in standard form to get
24
y2  x.
5
This implies
24 6
4a  a .
5 5
Hence the focus is F(6/5,0).

45
The equation of the directrix is
6
x  a   .
5

The length of the latus rectum is

24
l  4a 
5

4.2 General equation of a parabola

Let the focus of the parabola be F(h,k) and the equation of the directrix be Ax' By 'C  0
(Fig.2)

y-axis P(x,y) axis

M F(h,k)
V

D
x-axis
O
directrix

Figure 4.2

Let P(x,y) be any point on the parabola. From the definition of parabola, FP=PM.
Also
FP  ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2 .
( Ax  By  C )
The distance from point (x,y) to line Ax+By+C=0 is MP 
A2  B 2

The general equation of the parabola is therefore given by

46
 ( Ax  By  C ) 2
( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2 
A2  B 2

Special cases
(a)
From the general equation, the equation of a parabola whose axis is y-axis focus F(0,a) and
directrix is y =-a or y+a=0 (hence vertex is at origin) is given by

x 2  ( y  a) 2  ( y  a) 2

x 2  4ay

y-axis
P(x,y)

F(0,a)

x-axis
0
directrix, y=-a
M

Figure 4.3

(b) The vertex at the origin, focus is F(-a,0) and directrix x=a or x-a=0. The equation is

( x  a) 2  y 2  ( x  a) 2


y 2  4ax

47
 P(x,y) y
M

x
F(-a,0) O D

Figure 4.4

(c)
The vertex at the origin, focus is F(0,-a) and directrix y=a or y-a=0. The equation is

x 2  ( y  a) 2  ( y  a) 2


x 2  4ay

y-axis

M D directrix y+a=0

O
x-axis

F(0,-a)

P(x,y)

Figure 4.5

48
4.3 Parabola with horizontal or vertical axis but vertex not at origin

Consider a parabola with a horizontal axis, directrix x=d, focus F(h,k) and vertex V( c1 , c 2 ).

y-axis M P(x,y)

F(h,k)
V

X=d

x-axis
O

Figure 4.6
From the definition
( x  d ) 2  ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2 .
Let the distance from the vertex to the focus be a . Then d  c1  a, h  c1  a, and k  c 2 .
Therefore

( x  c1  a ) 2  ( x  c1  a ) 2  ( y  c 2 ) 2 .
Which reduces to
( y  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x  c1 )

It can be easily shown that if the axis is vertical , focus and vertex being F(h,k) and V( c1 , c 2 ),
and directrix y= d, then the equation of the parabola is

( x  c1 ) 2  4a ( y  c 2 )

Example 4.3
Find the vertex, the axis of symmetry, the focus, the equation of the directrix and the length of
the latus rectum of the parabola
y 2  6 y  12 x  9  0

Solution
Write the equation in standard form as

y 2  6 y  9  12 x

49

( y  3) 2  12 x

This implies 4a  12  a  3 . Hence the vertex is V(0,3), the axis of symmetry is y=3, the
equation of the directrix is x  d  c1  a  3 , that is
x  3 .

Example 4.4
Find the vertex, the axis of symmetry, the focus, the equation of the directrix and the length of
the latus rectum of the parabola
x 2  10 x  6 y  40  0

Solution
Write the equation in standard form as

x 2  10 x  40  6 y .
This reduces
( x  5) 2  6( y  5 / 2)

This implies 4a  6  a  3 / 2 . Hence the vertex is V(5,5/2), the axis of symmetry is x=5, the
equation of the directrix is x  d  c1  a  4 , that is
x4 .

Exercises 4.1
1. Find the equation of the hyperbola whose focus and directrix are as given below.
(a) F(5,0), x+5=0
(b) F(0,-2), y-2=0
(c) F(3,4), 4x+3y-2=0
(d) F(6-2), 3y=8x-4
2. Find the vertex, the focus, the equation of the directrix and the length of the latus rectum.
(a) 9 x 2  24 x  252 y  16  0
(b) x 2  8 x  2 y  10  0
© 4 y 2  4 y  3 x  193  0
(d) 98 y 2  56 y  84 x  176  0

4.4 Tangent to a parabola

We consider the case when the axis is horizontal and when it is vertical.
For the horizontal case, let the equation of the parabola be ( y  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x  c1 ) . To get the
equation of the tangent to the parabola at point P( x1 , y1 ) , consider another point Q( x 2 , y 2 ) (Fig
4.7)

50
 y
P

x-axis
O

Figure 4.7

The slope of PQ is
y 2  y1
m PQ  .
x 2  x1
As Q approaches P, x 2 approaches x1 and y 2 approaches y1 . The limit of the slope of PQ is
therefore
y  y1 0
Lim(m PQ )  Lim( 2 )
Q P Q P x  x 0
2 1
which is undefined. To get the limit, consider the equations
( y 2  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x 2  c 2 ) -----------------------------------------(4.1)
( y1  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x1  c1 ) ------------------------------------------(4.2)

Subtracting (4.2) from (4.1) gives

( y 2  c 2 ) 2  ( y1  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x 2  x1 )
or
[( y 2  c 2 )  ( y1  c 2 )][( y 2  c 2 )  ( y1  c 2 )]  4a ( x 2  x1 )

y 2  y1 4a

x 2  x1 y1  y 2  2c 2
Hence as Q approaches P the limit of the slope is
 y  y1  2a
mt  Lim 2   .
Q P x  x y1  c 2
 2 1 

Let R(x,y) be any other point on the tangent. Then the equation of the tangent is

51
 y  y1 2a

x  x1 y1  c 2
or
( y  y1 )( y1  c 2 )  2a ( x  x 1 ) .
This can be restructured as below.
[( y  c 2 )  ( y1  c 2 )]( y1  c 2 )  2a[( x  c 1 )  ( x 1  c1 )]

( y  c 2 )( y1  c 2 )  ( y1  c 2 ) 2  2a ( x  c1 )  2a ( x1  c1 )

( y  c 2 )( y1  c 2 )  4a ( x1  c1 )  2a ( x  c1 )  2a ( x1  c1 )

( y  c 2 )( y1  c 2 )  2a ( x  x1  2c1 ) .
When the vertex is at the origin, the equation of the tangent at point P( x1 , y1 ) is
yy1  2a ( x  x1 ) .

Example 4.5
Find the equation of the tangent to the parabola y 2  2 y  12 x  23  0 at point P(-7/4,10).
Solution
Write the equation in standard form as
y 2  2 y  1  12 x  24
( y  1) 2  ( x  2)
Hence c 1  2, c 2  1 and a  3 . The equation of the tangent at point P(-7/4,10)
is therefore

( y  1)(10  1)  2 X 3( x  7 / 4  4)
or
6 x  6 y  17  0 .
Example 4.6
Find the equations of the tangents at the end points of the latus rectum of the parabola
y 2  6 y  20 x  49  0 .
Solution
Write the equation in standard form to get
( y  3) 2  20( x  2) .
This implies 4a  20,  a  5 . The axis of symmetry is y=-3. The vertex is V(2,-3), the focus is
F(7,-3) and the endpoints of the latus rectum are P1 (7,7) and P2 (7,13) .
The equation of the tangent at P1 (7,7) is
( y  3)(7  3)  10( x  7  14)
or
x  y  10  0
The equation of the tangent at P2 (7,13) is

52
 ( y  3)(13  3)  10( x  7  14)
or
x  y  4  0.

Now consider the case when the axis is vertical with the equation ( x  c1 ) 2  4a ( y  c 2 ) .
Let P( x1 , y1 ) and Q( x 2 , y 2 ) be points on the parabola (Fig below).

F(h,k)
Q

V
directrix,

x-axis
O

Figure 4.8

To get the slope of the tangent at P( x1 , y1 ) consider the slope of PQ which again is

y 2  y1
m PQ  .
x 2  x1
The limit of the slope as Q approaches P is
y 2  y1 0
Lim(m PQ )  Lim( )
Q P x 2  x1
Q P 0
which again is undefined. The coordinates of P and Q satisfy the equations
( x 2  c1 ) 2  4a ( y 2  c 2 ) -----------------------------------------(4.3)
( x1  c1 ) 2  4a ( y1  c 2 ) ------------------------------------------(4.4)

Subtracting (4.4) from (4.3) gives

( x 2  c1 ) 2  ( x1  c1 ) 2  4a ( y 2  y1 )
or
[( x 2  c1 )  ( x1  c1 )][( x 2  c1 )  ( x1  c1 )]  4a ( y 2  y1 )


53
 y 2  y1 x1  x 2  2c1

x 2  x1 4a
Hence as Q approaches P the limit of the slope is
 y  y1  x1  c1
mt  Lim 2  .
Q P x  x 
 2 1  2a
Let R(x,y) be any other point on the tangent. Then the equation of the tangent is

x1  c1
y  y1  ( x  x1 ) .
2a
or
( x  x1 )( x1  c1 )  2a ( y  y 1 ) .
On restructuring the equation we get
( x  c1 )( x1  c1 )  2a ( y  y1  2c 2 ) .
When the vertex is at the origin, the equation of the tangent at point P( x1 , y1 ) is
xx1  2a ( y  y1 ) .

Example 4.7
Find the equation of the tangent to the parabola x 2  22 x  24 y  169  0 at the point whose focal
distance is 11 units.

Solution
Write the equation in standard form as
( x  11) 2  24( y  2) .
This implies the axis is vertical, the vertex is V(11,-2), 4a  24,  a  6 and the focus is
F(11,-8). Let P( x1 , y1 ) be a point whose focal distance is 11 units. Then

( x1  11) 2  ( y1  8) 2  121
Also

( x1  11) 2  24( y1  2) .

( y1  8) 2  24( y1  2)  121 .

y1  7 or 15.
But y1  2 . For y1  7 , x1  11  120 or x1  11  120 . Points (11  120 ,7) and
( 11  120 ,7) are at a distance of 11 units from the focus.
The equation of the tangent to the parabola at (11  120 ,7) is

54
 ( x  11)(11  120  11)  2  6( y  7  4)
or
120 x  24 y  36  11 120 .

4.5 Normal to a parabola

The normal to a parabola at a given point on the parabola is the line perpendicular to the tangent
at the point. The slope of the normal is therefore the negative reciprocal of the slope of the
tangent. Suppose the equation of the parabola is ( y  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x  c1 ) . The slope of the tangent
at point P( x1 , y1 ) on the parabola was found to be
2a
mt  .
y1  c 2
The slope of the normal is therefore
 ( y1  c 2 )
mn  .
2a

Let R(x,y) be any other point on the normal. The equation of the normal is then
 ( y1  c 2 )
y  y1  ( x  x1 ) .
2a

Example 4.8
Find the equations of the tangent and normal to the parabola
y 2  10 y  2 x  41  0
at the point (-10,3).

Solution
The standard form is
( y  5) 2  2( x  8) .
This implies 4a  2,  a  1 / 2 . The axis of symmetry is y=5. The vertex is V(-8,5), the focus is
F(-5,-4.5) . The slope of the tangent at (-10,3) is

 2a
mt   1/ 2 .
y1  5

The equation of the tangent is therefore

( y  5)(3  5)  2  1 / 2( x  10  16)
or
x  2 y  16  0 .
The equation of the normal at (-10,3) is

55
 y  3  2( x  10)
or
2 x  y  23  0 .

4.6 Pair of tangents from a point

Consider the parabola ( y  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x  c1 ) and point Q(q1 , q 2 ) outside the parabola. There are
two tangents to the parabola which intersect at Q(q1 , q 2 ) . Let P( x1 , y1 ) be a point on the
parabola such that the tangent at that point passes through Q(q1 , q 2 ) . From the equation of the
tangent through P( x1 , y1 ) and any other point R ( x, y ) on the tangent,
( y  c 2 )( y1  c 2 )  2a ( x  x1  2c1 ) .

(q 2  c 2 )( y1  c 2 )  2a (q1  x1  2c1 ) . ------------------------------(4.5)
Since P( x1 , y1 ) is on the parabola, then
( y1  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x1  c1 ) ---------------------------------------------(4.6)

Solving for x1 and y1 by equations (4.5) and (4.6) gives the two points on the parabola whose
tangents meet at Q(q1 , q 2 ) .

Example 4.9
Find the points on the parabola y 2  12 y  14 x  162  0 through which the tangents which meet
at Q(2,4) pass.

Solution
The standard form of the equation is ( y  6) 2  14( x  9) . Let P( x1 , y1 ) be a point on the
parabola and on tangent through Q(2,4). Then
(4  6)( y1  6)  7(2  x1  18)
 7 x1  2 y1  114  0
and
( y1  6) 2  14( x1  9) .
106  2 82
Solving for x1 and y1 gives y1  4  82  x1  .Having obtained the coordinates
7
of the points the equations of the tangents can be easily obtained.

56
4.7 Parametric equation of a parabola

Consider the parabola

( y  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x  c1 ) .
Let
( y  c 2 )  2at .
Then
4a ( x  c1 )  4a 2 t 2 ,  x  c1  at 2 .
This implies the parametric equation of a parabola with its vertex at C (c1 , c 2 ) is
x  at 2  c1 , y  2at  c 2 .
The point (at 2  c1 ,2at  c 2 ) is referred to as point t of the parabola.
If the vertex of the parabola is at the origin, the parametric equation is
x  at 2 , y  2at .
And point t of the parabola is (at 2 ,2at ) .

Example 4.10
Find the parametric equation of the parabola y 2  23 x .
Solution
The parabola has its center at the origin and 4a  23,  a  23 / 4 . The parametric equation is
therefore x  23t 2 / 4 , y  23t / 2

Example 4.11
Find the parametric equation of the parabola
y 2  12 y  20 x  76  0 .

Solution
The equation can be written as ( y  6) 2  20( x  2) . The vertex of the parabola is V(2,6) and
4a  20,  a  5 . Hence the parametric equation of the parabola is

x  5t 2  2 , y  10t  6 .

The equation of the tangent to the parabola at point t1 can be obtained as follows. In the equation
of the tangent at point P( x1 , y1 ) on parabola ( y  c 2 ) 2  4a ( x  c1 ) ,
( y  c 2 )( y1  c 2 )  2a ( x  x1  2c1 ) ,
substitute ( y1  c 2 ) with 2at1 , and x1  c1 with at1 to get
2

t1 ( y  c 2 )  ( x  at12  c1 ) .

57
Example 4.12
Find the equation of the tangent at point t  2 on the parabola y 2  14 y  12 x  13  0 .

Solution
In standard form the equation is ( y  7) 2  12( x  3) which implies c1  3, c 2  7 ,
4a  12,  a  3 . From (eq) the equation of the tangent at t  2 is
2( y  7)  ( x  3  4  3)
which reduces to
x  2y 1  0 .
This can be easily verified as follows. Substituting t  2 in (eq) the Cartesian coordinates of the
point are (9,5). The equation of the tangent through this point from (eq) is
y  7)(5  7)  6( x  9  6),  x  2 y  1  0 .

Exercises 4.3

Find the equation of the tangent to the parabola at the given value of t.
(a) y 2  3 y  2 x  1  0 at t=4
(b) y 2  20 y  9 x  8  0 at t=3
(c) x 2  24 x  2 y  12  0 at t=5

Miscellaneous Exercises
1. Find the equation of the parabola with given vertex and focus.
(a) V(0,0) F(0,4)
(b) V(0,0) F(0,-4)
(c) V(0,0) F(0,3)
(d) V(-1,2) F(5,2)

2. Find the equation of the parabola for the given focus and directrix.
(a) F (0,6) x=-6
(b) F(3,4), x=0
(c) F (-2,8) y=5
(d) F (5,7) y=-9
(e) F(2,1) y=5+3x

3. Find the equation of the tangent and the normal to the parabola at the given point.
(a) y 2  4 y  4 x  8  0 P (5/4,1)
(b) x 2  12 y  6  0 P (4,5/6)
(c) y 2  2 y  8 x  9  0 P (1,1)
(d) x 2  4 y  6 y  5  0 P (3,13/3)

58
 4. Find the equations of the tangent and normal to the parabola at the ends of the latus
rectum of the given parabola.
(a) y 2  6 y  7 x  10  0
(b) x 2  8 y  3 x  8  0
(c) y 2  8x  9  0
(d) x 2  72 y  8 x  9  0

5. Find the equations of the tangent and the normal to the parabola
y 2  10 y  3 x  1  0 at the point P (-6,3).

6. Find the parametric equation of the parabola y 2  20 y  4 x  60  0 .

7. Find the equation of the tangent to the parabola at the given value of t.
(a) y 2  y  3 x  10  0 at t=2
(b) x 2  12 y  6 x  4  0 at t=-3
(c)  x 2  4 x  2 y  22  0 at t=5

Summary
The parabola as conic section has been studied in this chapter. The equation of the parabola has
been studied as a function of focus, vertex and directrix. We have shown how to

(4) Get the equation given the focus and the vertex, or vertex and the directrix.
(5) Get the equation of the tangent and the normal to a parabola at a point on the
parabola.
(6) Determine the parametric equation of parabola.

Further Reading

1 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
2 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
3 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

59
 Chapter 5: ELLIPSE
5.0 Introduction

The ellipse was defined as the conic section whose eccentricity is less than one. This curve is
also the locus of a point that moves such that the sum of the distance from two fixed points is
fixed.

Objectives
At the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:-
(a) Determine the standard and the general equation of an ellipse given its directrix and
focus or focus and eccentricity.
(b) Determine the parametric equation of an ellipse.
(c) Find the vertices and the latus rectum of an ellipse.

5.1 The equation of an ellipse

Let the focus of the ellipse be F and the directrix be DM. See figure below.

D D’
V F V’

Figure 5.1

From the definition PF= e PM

Between D and F, there is a point V such that
FV=e VD
Which lies on the ellipse.
Also further away from D along line DF there is another point V, which satisfies
FV=e VD
Let point C be the midpoint between V and V. Also let the distance CV= CV= a

60
Hence VV= 2a
Then
FV+ FV=e (VD+VD) =e DD where VD=VD also DD=2CD
Hence
a
VV=2e CD=2a or CD=
e
Also write
FV-FV=e (VD-VD)=e VV= 2ae
But
FV-FV=FV+FV-2FV
=2CV-2FV=2(CV-FV)
=2CF
Hence
CF= ae
Let C be placed at the origin on the XY plane, CD be along the X- axis and the vertical line
through C the Y-axis.
Notice that there now can be another point F as the focus and directrix DM that would have
given the same results as above.
a
If C is the origin, the focus is F( ae, o ) and F ( ae, o ) and the equation of the directrix x=
e
a
or x=
e

Now
a
FP= ( x  ae) 2  y 2 and PM= -x
e
From FP=e PM, we get
2
a 
( x  ae ) + y =   x  e 2 This gives
2 2

e 

 a 2 2a 
x 2 -2aex+a 2 e 2 +y 2 =e 2  2  x  x 2 
e e 

= a 2 -2aex+e 2 x 2

x2 y2
(1-e ) x +y =a -a e
2 2 2 2
or 2 2
+ 1
a 2 a 2 (1  e 2 )
The curve has two axis. The longer one is the major axis which has length 2a.The shorter axis
obtained for the case above when x=0 as 2 a 2 (1  e 2 ) is the minor axis.
x2 y2
Let b =a (1-e ) Then the equation is 2  2  1
2 2 2
which is in standard form.
a b

61
Example 5.1
Find the directrix, eccentricity and focus of the ellipse given by 4x 2 +9y 2 =36.

Solution
x2 y2
Writing in standard form  1 a 2 =9 a=3, and b 2 =2.
9 4

To get the eccentricity, we have

b 2 = a 2 (1-e 2 )
5 5
9(1-e 2 )=4 or
e= =
3 3
5 a 9 27
ae =9 =35 and = 3=
3 e 5 5
27
Hence the focus is F (3 5 , 0) and the directrix is x=
5
Example 5.2
2
Find the equation of and sketch the ellipse whose eccentricity is center at origin and directrix
3
x  6 and focus (1,0)
Solution
y

P ( x, y )

D x
F(1,0)

Figure 5.2

a 2
Since =6, then a  6e  6   4.
e 3
 4  16  5 80
b 2  a 2 (1  e) 2  161    
 9 9 9

62
 x2 y2
Hence the equation is  1
16  80 
 
 9 

Exercise 5.1
1. Find the eccentricity, the focus and directrix of the given ellipse.
x2 y2
(a)  1
9 4
x2 y2
(b)  1
16 9
(c) x 2  4 y 2  9
x2 y2
(d)  1
4 25
y2
(e) x 2  1
4
2. Find the equation of the ellipse and the directrix with center at the origin, given
eccentricity and focus.
2
(a) e  F (5,0)
3
1
(b) e  F (4,0)
5
1
(c) e  F (0,6)
3
3
(d) e  F (0,3)
10
1
(e) e  F (1,0)
2

5.2 The general equation of an ellipse

Using the general equation we can obtain the equation of an ellipse whose axis is not necessarily
as in the illustration in section 5.2.
Consider the ellipse whose focus F (h, k ) and the directrix is any line ax  by  c  0 . Let
P ( x, y ) be any point on the ellipse.

63
 y
M

P ( x, y )

F
x
O

Figure 5.3

Now
ax  by  c
FP= ( x  h) 2  ( y  k ) 2 and PM=
a2  b2
Hence the general equation is
2 2 2 (ax  by  c) 2
( x - h ) +( y - k ) = e
a2  b2

Example 5.3
2
Find the equation of the ellipse whose focus is and the directrix is y =9.
3
Solution
From the general equation we get

4 4 2
(x-o) 2  ( y-4) 2 = (y-9) 2 or x 2  y 2 -8y+16- y  8 y  36 or
9 9
5 x2 y2
x 2  y 2  20 which is  0
9 20 36

This is an ellipse whose major axis is along the y-axis and is of length 2b=2 36 =12 and minor
axis along the y-axis and length 2a=2 20 =4 5 .
x2 y2
We have seen that when the center of the ellipse is ( o, o ), then the equation is  1
a b
If the center is shifted to say C ( m, n ), the equation of the ellipse becomes

64
 ( x  m) ( y  n)
 1
a2 b2

Example 5.4
Find the focus, the center, the eccentricity and directrix of the ellipse whose equation is
x 2 4 y 2  4 x  24 y  24  0

Solution
Writing in the standard form gives
x 2 4 y 2  4 x  24 y  24 or (x+2) 2 4( y  3) 2  24  4  36  16
Hence
( x  2) 2 ( y  3) 2
  1 Where a 2  16  a=4 b 2  4  b=2
16 4

3
The center is C (-2,3) eccentricity is given by b 2  a 2 (1  e) 2  4  16(1  e 2 ) or e 
2
3 .4
Since the centre is C (-2,3) the abscissa for the foci are  2  ae  2 
2
Here they are
F1 (2  2 3 , 3) and F2 (2  2 3 , 3)
The directrix is at
a 8
x  2   2  .
e 3

5.3 The length of the latus rectum.

Consider the origin-centered ellipse.

y
P M

D
O F

Figure 5.4

From the definition of an ellipse we have for the length l through the focus

65
 l a
 e  l  e(  ae) Or l  a (1  e) 2
a e
 ae
e
Hence the length of an ellipse is 2l  2a (1  e) 2

Exercise 5.2
1. Find the equation of the ellipse with the given focus, directrix and eccentricity.
1
(a) F (2,1) directrix x  2 , e 
2
1
(b) F (4,7)directrix y  2 , e 
4
3
(c) F (-2,3) directrix y  7, e 
5
2
(d) F (-1,1) directrix x  y  2  0, e 
7
1
(e) F (4,10) directrix 3 x  8 y  2  0, e
2
2. Find the foci, the center, the eccentricity and directrix of the given ellipse.
x2 y2
(a)  1
169 25
(b) 9 x 2  4 y 2  36 x  24 y  36  0
(c) 16 x 2  25 y 2  32 x  50 y  16  0
(d) 4 x 2  9 y 2  48 x  72 y  144  0
(e) 5 x 2  9 y 2  80 x  5 y  221  0
3. Find the equation of the ellipse with its center at (1,2), focus at (6,2) and passing through
point (4,6).
4. Find the vertices and the length of the latus rectum of the ellipse,
x2 y2
(a)  1
8 4
x2 y2
(b)  1
16 12
(c) 225 x 2  289 y 2  65025
(d) 36 x 2  11 y 2  144 x  144 y  208  0
(e) 3 x 2  4 y 2  28 x  16 y  48  0

5.4 The tangent of an ellipse.

( x  m) 2 ( y  n) 2
Consider the ellipse whose equation is  1
a2 b2
We wish to get the equation of the ellipse at point say P1 ( x1 y1 ) on the ellipse.

66
 y P1 ( x1 y1 )

Q
y
O

Figure 5.5

Let Q( x 2 , y 2 ) be any other point on the ellipse which approaches P1 . The gradient of P1Q1 is
y  y1
m. 2 . As Q approaches P1 we get the limit from: since Q and P 1 are on the ellipse, then
x 2  y1
we have
( x1  m) 2 ( y1  n) 2
 1 1
a2 b2
And
( x 2  m) 2 ( y  m) 2
 1 2
a2 b2
Subtracting 1 from 2 we get

( x 2  m) 2  ( x1  m 2 ) ( y 2  m) 2  ( y1  m)
+ =0
a2 b2
Or
 a2
( x 2  x1 )( x 2  m  x1  m)  2 ( y 2  y1 )( y1  n  y 2  n)
b
y 2  y1  b ( x1  m  x 2  m
2
  2
x 2  x1 a ( y1  n  y 2  n)
With the limit
y  y1  b2 x  m
Lim ( 2 ) 2 ( 1 )
x 2  x1 a y1  n
QP
Hence the equation of the tangent is for any point P ( x, y ) on the tangent
y  y1  b 2 ( x1  m)
 2
x  x1 a ( y1  n)
 b2
Or ( y  y1 )( y1  n)  ( x  x1 )( x1  m)
a2

67
This can be written as
 y  n  ( y1  n)( y1  n)   b2 x  m  ( x1  m)( x1  m)
2

a
 b 2 ( x  m)( x1  m)  a 2 ( y  n)( y1  n)  b 2 ( x1  m) 2  a 2 ( y1  n) 2  a 2 b 2
Or
( x  m)( x1  m) ( y  n)( y1  n)
 1
a2 b2
This is the equation of the tangent.

Example 5.5
Find the equation of the tangent and equation of the normal at point P (1,2) of the ellipse
( x  1) 2  4( y  1) 2  4 .

Solution
Write the equation in the standard form to get
( x  1) 2 ( y  1) 2
 4
4 1
The tangent passes through (-1,2)  x1  1 and y1  2 . We get the equation of the tangent as
( x  1)(1  1) ( y  1)(2  1)
  4  y =5
4 1

5.5 Parametric equation of an ellipse

To get the parametric equation of an ellipse we first define the auxiliary circle. The auxiliary
circle of an ellipse is the circle whose center is the center of the ellipse and its diameter is equal
to the length of the major axis.

68
 y
C

Figure 5.6

Let  be any angle on the auxiliary circle as in the figure above. Consider point P ( x, y ) on the
ellipse and on the vertical line through C. Angle  is called the eccentric angle of point P ( x, y ) .
Obviously x  a cos  . To get y substitute in the equation
x2 y2
 1
a2 b2
to get
a 2 cos 2  y 2
 2 1
a2 b
which comes to y  b sin  . Hence the parametric equations of an ellipse are
x  a cos  , y  b sin  .

(a cos  , b sin  ) is a point on the ellipse.

Example 5.6
Find the equation of the chord joining two points whose eccentric angles are 1 and  2 on the
ellipse
x2 y2
  1.
a2 b2
Solution
Let the two points be P1 (a cos 1 , b sin 1 ) and P2 (a cos  2 , b sin  2 ) . The equation of chord P1 P2
is
b sin  2  b sin 1
y  b sin 1  ( x  a cos 1 )
a cos  2  a cos 1

69
 b cos[( 2  1 ) / 2]
 y  b sin 1  ( x  a cos 1 )
 a sin[( 2  1 ) / 2]

This reduces to
   2     2     2 
bx cos 1   ay sin  1   ab cos 1 .
 2   2   2 
Hence the equation of the chord joining the two points is
x     2  y  1   2     2 
cos 1   sin    cos 1 
a  2  b  2   2 

Exercise 5.3
1. Find the equation of the tangent and the normal at the given point of the given ellipse.
x2 y2  1 
(a)   1,  2, 189 
25 9  5 
(b) 4 x  9 y  144,
2 2
(3,2 3)
 1 1
(c) x 2  5 y 2  2 x  20 y  16  0 , 1  23, 
 2 2
(d) 13 x  23 y  51x  19 y  4  0,
2 2
(1,-1)
2. Find the parametric equation of the given ellipse.
x2 y2
(a)  1
36 4
(b) x 2  2 y 2  2 x  8 y  5  0
(c) x 2  9 y 2  10 x  54 y  97  0
x2 y2
(d)  1
4 25

Miscellaneous Exercises

1. Find the equation of the ellipse whose center is origin, eccentricity and focus given.
1
(a) e  ,F (9,0)
6
9
(b) e  , F (0,7)
10
2
(c) e  , F (7,0)
7
1
(d) e  , F (0,12)
12
2. Find the foci, the vertices, eccentricity, length of the latus rectum and equation of the
directrix for the given ellipse.

70
 x2 y2
(a)  1
16 4
(b) 9 x 2  36 y 2  324
(c) 4 x 2  8 x  9 y 2  72 y  112  0
(d) 9 x 2  90 x  4 y 2  16 y  205  0
 1 
3. Find the tangent to the ellipse x 2  4 y 2  4 at point 1, 3
 2 
4. Find the length of the latus rectum of the ellipse 5 x  60 x  3 y 2  12 y  191  0
2

5. Determine the equation of the ellipse which is the locus of the point that moves such that
the sum of its distances from the points (4,5) and (9,5) is 15 units. Find the vertices,
eccentricity and length of the latus rectum.
6. The eccentric circle of an ellipse is x 2  y 2  4 x  6 y  12  0. If its eccentricity is
2
e  , and the major axis horizontal, find the foci, the vertices and length of latus
3
rectum.
7. Find the parametric equation of the ellipse 16 x 2  9 y 2  32 x  36 y  92  0

8.Find the vertices, foci,length of the latus rectum and the equation of directrix of the
parabola x  7 cos  , y  3 sin 

Summary

In this chapter, we have studied the hyperbola. We have shown how to:
(a) Determine the general and the standard equation of an ellipse
(b) Find the tangent to an ellipse at a given point on the ellipse
(c) Find the parametric equation of an ellipse.

Further Reading

4 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
5 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
6 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

71
 Chapter 6: HYPERBOLA

6.0 Introduction

The hyperbola was briefly described in section - - - - as the locus of a point that moves such that
the ratio of its distance from a fixed point to the distance from a fixed line is greater than one.

Objectives
At the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:-
(a) Determine the standard and the general equation of a hyperbola.
(b) Find the tangents and the normal to the hyperbola at a given point on the hyperbola.
(c) Determine the asymptotes of a hyperbola.
(d) Find the parametric equation of a hyperbola.

6.1 Equation of a hyperbola

The standard equation can be developed as follows:

Consider a fixed point F and a fixed line D as in the diagram below.

M P

D F
F’ V’ D’ V

Figure 6.1

PF
P ( x, y ) is on the parabola such that  e 1 or PF  eMP
MP
Let the axis of the hyperbola be the horizontal line perpendicular to the directrix through the
focus and vertex V be the point of intersection of the hyperbola and the axis,

72
Hence
FV  eVD.
There also exists another point V1 along the axis such that FV  = eV  D . Infact there is a whole
set of points and also the virtual focus F and directrix D .
Let the distance VV = 2a and let C be the midpoint of VV .
Then
FV   FV  e(V D  VD )  e( D D  e2CD
But
FV   FV  V V  2a
a
 2eCD  2a  CD 
e
Also
FV   FV  e(V D  VD )eV V  2ae
But
FV   FV  F F  2CF  2CF  2ae  CF  ae
a
Let C be at the origin. Then the foci are F (ae,0) and F ' ( ae,0) . The directrix is x  .
e
a
From PF  ePM , PF  ( x  ae) 2  y 2 , PM  x  , we get
e
a
( x  ae) 2  y 2  e 2 ( x  ) 2 ,
e
or
x 2 (e 2  1)  y 2  a 2 (e 2  1) ,
or
x2 y2
  1,
a2 b2
where b 2  a 2 (e 2  1) . This is the standard equation of a hyperbola.

The curve has two lines of symmetry, the x-axis and the y-axis. VV ' is called the transverse axis
and BB ' the conjugate axis.

The difference between PV ' and PV is a constant equal to 2a as shown below.

a
PF  e( x  )  ex  a
e
a
PF '  eM ' P  e( x  )  ex  a
e
 PF ' PF  2a .
This provides an alternative definition of a hyperbola as the locus of a point that moves such that
the difference between the distances from two fixed points a constant.

73
Example 6.1

Determine the equation of the hyperbola whose eccentricity is 3/2 and the foci are F ' (2,0) and
F (2,0) .

Solution

Since ae  2, and e=3/2, then a=4/3. This implies

16 9 20
b 2  a 2 (e 2  1)  (  1)  .
9 4 9
Hence the equation is
x2 y2
  1.
(16 / 9) (20 / 9)
The latus rectum is the chord perpendicular to the transverse axis and through the focus. The
length of the latus rectum is obtained as follows. Let the length be l  2l1 , where l1 is the
distance from the focus along the latus rectum to the curve. Then
l1
 e,  l1  a (e 2  1) .
ae  a / e
Hence the length of the latus rectum is
l  2l1  2a (e 2  1) .

Example 6.2

Find the coordinates of the foci, the eccentricity, the length of the latus rectum and the directrix
of the hyperbola
x2 y2
  1.
36 4

Solution
From the equation a=6 and b=2. The eccentricity is obtained from b 2  a 2 (e 2  1) as e  1
3 10 .
The foci are therefore F ' (3 10 ,0) and F (3 10 ,0) . The length of the latus rectum is
10
L  2a (e 2  1)  2  9(  1)  2
9

Exercise 6.1
1. Find the equation of the hyperbola with center at the origin, the given focus and
eccentricity.
5
(a) Focus F (6,0), eccentricity e 
2

74
 5
(b) Focus F (1,0), eccentricity e 
2
7
(c) Focus F (5,0), eccentricity e 
4
6
(d) Focus F (0,3), eccentricity e 
5
7
(e) Focus F (0,2), eccentricity e 
2
10
(f) Focus F (0,8), eccentricity e 
7
2. Find the foci, the vertices, the eccentricity, and the equation of the directrix of the given
hyperbola.
x2 y2
(a)  1
9 4
x2 y2
(b)  1
25 36
(c) x 2  9 y 2  9
(d) 9 x 2  16 y 2  144
(e) 49 x 2  16 y 2  784
y2 x2
(f)  1
9 4
(g) 25 y 2  4 x 2  100

6.2 The Asymptotes of a hyperbola

Consider the hyperbola

x2 y2
 1 and let y  mx  C be any line. The line and hyperbola meet at
a2 b2
points where
x 2 y 2 x 2 (mx  C ) 2
   0
a2 b2 a2 b2
 (b 2  m 2 a 2 ) x 2  2a 2 mCx  a 2 (b 2  c 2 )  0
The points of intersection are at infinity if the coefficients of x 2 and x are zero.
This implies b 2  m 2 a 2  0
b
m and 2a 2 mc  0  c  0.
a
b
Hence the asymptotes of the hyperbola are y   x
a

75
Exercise 6.2

1.Find the length of the latus rectum and the asymptotes of the hyperbola given.
(a) 9 x 2  4 y 2  36
x2 y2
(b)  1
5 3
(c) 7 y 2  4 x 2  28
(d) 4 y 2  x 2  16
(e) x 2  4 y 2  4

6.3 Hyperbola with center not at origin

x2 y2
Suppose the center of the hyperbola 2  2  1 is shifted to position C (h, k ) . The equation
a b
becomes
( x  h) 2 ( y  k 2
 1
a2 b2
If the transverse axis is along the y-axis, then the equation becomes
( y  k ) 2 ( x  h) 2
 1
a2 b2
Example 6.4
Analyze the hyperbola 9 x 2  16 y 2  18 x  64 y  199  0 .

Solution

Complete the squares and write the equation in standard form to get
9( x  1) 2  16( y  2) 2  144
or
( x  1) 2 ( y  2) 2
  1.
16 9
This is the equation of the hyperbola with center C (1,2) . Also a=4 and b=3. The eccentricity is
b2 9 5
e 2
1   1   ae  5 .
a 16 4
The vertices are V ' (3,2) and V (5,2) , foci F ' (4,2) and F (6,2) , asymptotes
3
y  2   ( x  1) .
4

76
6.4 Tangent and normal to a hyperbola

Consider the hyperbola

x2 y2
 1
a2 b2
xx1 yy1
The equation of the tangent to the hyperbola at point P( x1 , y1 ) is  2 1
a2 b
Note that the normal at any point on the curve can be easily obtained since it is the line
perpendicular to the tangent at that point.

Example 6.3
Determine the eccentricity, the foci, the length of the latus rectum, the equation of the
12
asymptotes, the equation of the tangent and the normal at point P (3, ) of the hyperbola
5
2 2
x y
  1
25 9

Solution
From the equation, a  5, b  3 Hence from b 2  a 2 (e 2  1) we get the eccentricity as
9 34
e  1  , and ae  34 .
25 5
Hence the foci are F ' ( 34 ,0) and F ( 34 ,0) .
The length of the latus rectum is
34 18
L  2a (e 2  1)  2  5(  1)  .
25 5
b 3 3
The asymptotes are y   x . Hence y  x and y   x .
a 5 5
12
The equation of the tangent at P (3, ) is
5
3 12 3 15
x y  1,  y  x  .
25 45 10 4
 10
The normal has therefore slope m  . Since it passes through P, then the equation is
3
y  12 / 5  10 57 10
 , y   x.
x3 3 25 3

6.6 Parametric equation of a hyperbola

To get the parametric equation of a hyperbola, consider the auxiliary circle whose center is the
center of the hyperbola and the diameter is the length of the transverse axis, 2a. Let P ( x, y ) be a
point on the hyperbola.

77
 y
P(x,y)

 x

Figure 6.2

___
Let TQ be the tangent to the circle at point T and Q be a point on the x-axis such that OQ  x .
Then
a
x
cos 
To get y, put
2
 a  1 y2
  2  2  1
 cos   a b
which reduces to
y  b tan  .
The parametric equations of a hyperbola is therefore
x  a sec  , y  b tan 
The point (a sec  , b tan  ) is a point on the parabola. Note that when   / 2     / 2 the
parametric equation describes the right half of the curve. When  / 2    3 / 2 the left half is
described. When    / 2 and    / 2 , the point would be at the asymptote.

78
Example 6.5

Determine the point on the directrix of the hyperbola x  7 sec  , y  2 tan  which the tangent at
the point (7 sec 60,2 tan 60) passes through.

Solution

From the parametric equation, a=7 and b=2. Hence the Cartesian equation of the hyperbola is
x2 y2
 1
49 4
The eccentricity is
b2 4 53
e 2
1  1 
a 49 7
The equation of the directrix is therefore
a 49
x 
e 53
Point (7 sec 60,2 tan 60) is point (14,2 3 ) . The tangent to hyperbola at this point has equation
14 2 3 2  3
x y  1,  y   x  1
49 4 7  2
49
Substituting x  gives
53
 14  3
y    1  0 .8 .
 53  2
Hence the tangent at (7 sec 60,2 tan 60) intersects with the directrix at (1.9,0.8) .

Exercise 6.5

1.Find the vertices, the foci, the eccentricity, the directrix, the length of the latus rectum and the
asymptotes of the given hyperbola.
(a) x 2  4 y 2  6 x  16 y  11  0
(b) 25 y 2  9 x 2  225  0
(c) x 2  9 y 2  36 y  72  0
(d) 3 y 2  5 x 2  15
(e) 9 x 2  y 2  54 x  10 y  55  0
2. Find the equation of the tangent at the given point on thehyperbola.
 2 
(a) 4 x 2  9 y 2  36,  2, 5
 3 
(b) 25 y  x  25,
2 2
(5, 2 )

79
  1 
(c) x 2  4 y 2  6 x  16 y  11  0, 10,2  423 
 8 
 2
(d) 2 x 2  3 y 2  6,  2, 
 3 
 
(e) 4 x  9 y  576,
2 2
(15,6)
3. Find the parametric equation of the hyperbola with vertices and foci as given.
(a) V1 (2,0) V2 (2,0) F1 (3,0) F2 (3,0)
(b) V1 (6,0) V2 (6,0) F1 (12,0) F2 (12,0)
(c) V1 0,2) V2 (0,2) F1 (0,4) F2 (0,4)
(d) V1 (0,1) V2 (0,1) F1 (0,5) F2 (0,5)
4. Determine the equation of the tangent at the given point on the hyperbola and also obtain
the focal distance of the point.
(a) x  8 sec  , y  tan  , (8 sec 30,3 tan 30)
(b) x  4 sec  , y  2 tan  , ( 4 sec 45,2 tan 45)
(c) x  10 sec  , y  7 tan  , (10 sec10,7 tan 10)
(d) x  20 sec  , y  tan  , (20 sec 60, tan 60)

Miscellaneous Exercises

1. Find the vertices, length of the transverse axis, foci and eccentricity of the hyperbola.
x2
(a)  y2  1
16
x2 y2
(b)  1
49 16
y2 x2
(c)  1
12 5
(d) 9 x 2  4 y 2  36
2. Find the equation of the hyperbola with horizontal axis given center, eccentricity and the
directrix.
(a) Center (3,5) ; e=3/2; directrix x=5
(b) Center (-2,-8) ; e=5/2; directrix x=4
(c) Center (-5,2) ; e=7/3; directrix x=0
(d) Center (6,0) ; e=4/3; directrix x=8.
3. Find the length of latus rectum and the asymptotes of the given parabola.
(a) 3 x 2  18 x  4 y 2  8 y  22  0
(b) x 2  2 y 2  4 x  12 y  20  0
(c ) 25 x 2  16 y 2  400
(d) 21x 2  3 y 2  126 x  186  0
4. Find the equation of the tangent and the normal to the hyperbola
25 x 2  9 y 2  200 x  36 y  139  0

80
 at the point (4  15 216 ,3) .
5. Find the equation of the hyperbola with the center at the origin, axis on the
coordinate axis, and passes through points (3,1) and (9,5).
6. Find the parametric equation of the hyperbola 6 x 2  5 y 2  72 x  10 y  210  0 .

Summary

In this chapter, we have studied the hyperbola. We have shown how to:
(a) Determine the general and the standard equation of a hyperbola.
(b) Find the asymptotes of a hyperbola.
(c) Find the tangent to a hyperbola at a given point on the hyperbola.
(d) Find the parametric equation of a hyperbola.

Further Reading

1 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
2 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
3 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

81
 Chapter 7: POLAR COORDINATES
7.0 Introduction

In the previous chapters the study of analytical geometry was based on the rectangular coordinate
system. In this chapter we introduce the polar coordinate system. In the system, a fixed point is
described by its distance from a fixed point and its direction from a fixed line through the point.
The fixed point is called the pole and the fixed line is called the polar axis.

Objectives

By the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:

(a) Describe the polar coordinates of a point in relation to the pole and the polar axis.
(b) Determine the polar equation of a line and non linear curves.
(c) Convert a Cartesian equation to polar and vice versa.

7.1 The polar coordinates of a point

Let the fixed point be O (Fig). Suppose point P is at a distance r from O. Let angle XOP be  .
Then the polar coordinates of P are given as an ordered pair (r , )

P ( r , )


X
O

Figure 7.1

The angle is measured in an anticlockwise direction from the fixed line OX.. A negative value of
 implies the angle is measured clockwise from the fixed line. The distance r is always positive
as long as it is measured from the O to P.

82
 P1 (r , )




P2 ( r , ) P3 (r , )

Figure 7.2

Points P1 (r , ) , P2 (r , ) and P3 (r , ) give the various positions when r and  take negative
values.

7.2 Relationship between polar and rectangular coordinates

P ( x, y )


x
O

Figure 7.3

Consider a point P ( x, y ) whose polar coordinates are P (r , ) . From the diagram it is clear that
y
x  rCos , and y  rSin  tan  .
x
r 2  x2  y2
The above relationships can be used to transform the Cartesian coordinates to polar coordinates
and vice versa.

83
Example 7.1

Consider point (3,4) on the x y plane. From the above relationships, we get
4
r  3 2  4 2  5 and   tan 1  53.13
5
Hence the polar coordinates for P (3,4) are P (5,53.13)

Example 7.2
Consider point (7,60) on the plane. From the above relationships, we get r  5,

x  r cos   7 cos 60  7 / 2
y  r sin   7 sin 60  7 3 / 2
Hence the polar coordinates for (7,60) are (7/2,73/2).

7.3 Polar equation of a line

The angle of a line which will pass through the origin is fixed at say  where  is independent
of r. The part that lies on the positive side of the initial line from O is called the part-line with
equation   
l


x

Figure 7.4

84
Suppose the line l does not pass through the origin but is at distance p form the origin

R ( r , )

p
 90+
x
O

Figure 7.5

Let R (r , ) be any point on the line and  be the angle made by the perpendicular from origin
to the line. Then we see that if ON  p , then
p  rCos (   ) , the angle made by the line to the normal line is 90  
Here the equation of a line in polar form is
p  rCos (   )

7.4 Polar equation of a circle

If the radius of the circle is r  a , and the center at the origin, then the equation of the circle is
simply given as r  a .  varies from zero to 360 degrees.

Suppose the center of the circle of the circle is C (r1 , 1 ) and let P (r , ) be any point on the
circle. Let the radius of the circle be a . Then
y
P ( r , )

 1 x

Figure 7.6

85
Then from triangle OCP we have
OC 2  OP 2  2 OC  OPCosCOP  a 2  CP 2
COP     1
a 2  r1  r 2  2rr1Cos (   1 )
2
Here
This is the polar equation of a circle.

Example 7.3

Suppose the radius of a circle is a . Let the center be (b,0). Then the equation of the circle is
b 2  r 2  2brCos  a 2 .
If the circle passes through the pole with center (b,0), then the equation of the circle is
r  2aCos .

Example 7.4
Find the polar equation of the circle whose center has the Cartesian coordinates C(5,8) and radius
is 10.

Solution
First find  1 which is given by
 1  tan 1 (8 / 5)  58 .
Also
r1  8 2  5 2  89
Hence
10 2  89  r 2  2r 89Cos (  58) .
Or
r 2  2r 89Cos (  58)  11

7.5 Polar equation of a conic.

To get the polar equation of conic, recall a conic was defined as the locus of a point that moves
such that its distance from fixed point, the focus, is a fixed ratio to its distance to a fixed line, the
directrix.

For illustration, we consider the case when the focus is at the origin. The polar equation takes a
slightly different form depending on which side of the focus the directrix is as will be shown.

Consider the case when the directrix is at the left of the focus and the axis being the x-axis.

86
 M P ( r , )

Q r
N


D V F(0,0)

Figure 7.7

Let P (r , ) be any point on the conic. Then, from the definition,

FP  ePM ,  PM  r / e .
But also
PM  FD  r cos   r / e .
This gives
eFD
r .
1  e cos
But also,
eFD  FQ  a ,
where a is half the length of the latus rectum.
which implies
a
r .
1  e cos 

The conic can be distinguished from the polar equation by the value of e. If e<1, the conic is an
ellipse. If e=1, the conic is a parabola. If e>1, the conic is hyperbola.

Example 7.5

Consider the polar equation is

5
r .
4  3 cos 
Writing it in standard form gives
5/ 4
r .
1  (3 / 4) cos
Since e is less than one, the equation is that of an ellipse. The length of the latus rectum is
2a  2 X 5 / 4  5 / 2 .

87
Consider now the case when the directrix is on the right of the focus.

Q
N

P ( r , ) M


F(0,0) V D

Figure 7.8

Again, let P (r , ) be any point on the conic. Then, from the definition,
FP  ePM ,  PM  r / e .
But also
PM  FD  r cos   r / e .
This gives
eFD
r .
1  e cos
.
which implies
a
r .
1  e cos

Using a similar argument, it can easily be shown that if the directrix is horizontal, then the
equation is given by
a
r
1  e sin 
if the focus is at the origin and the directix below the x-axis. If the focus is at the origin and the
directrix above the x-axis, the polar equation of the conic is
a
r
1  e sin 

8
Example 7.6 Consider the conic equation r  . Writing the equation in standard form
3  9 sin 
gives

88
 8/3
r .
1  3 sin 
This is the equation of a hyperbola with focus at the origin, directrix parallel to and above the x-
ais, and the length of the latus rectum being 2a  2 X 8 / 3  16 / 3 .

Exercises 7.7

Determine the kind of conic represented by the given polar equation, and give the eccentricity.
Also state the position of the directrix in relation to the coordinate axis.
1
1. r .
2  cos 
9
2. r .
33  11 cos
7
3. r .
8  sin 
12
4. r .
2  15 sin 
14
5. r
6  5 cos 

7.6 Converting a Cartesian equation to polar equation and vice versa.

We found that for point P ( x, y ) whose polar coordinates are P (r , ) , then

x  rCos ,
y  rSin ,
y
 tan  ,
x
r 2  x2  y2 .
We use the relationships to transform any polar equation to Cartesian equation and vice versa.

Example 7.8
Write in Cartesian form the equation r  9Cos .

Solution
x x
Put r 2  x 2  y 2 and Cos  
r x2  y2
Hence

89
 x
x2  y2 =9  x 2  y 2  9x .
x y
2 2

Or
( x  4.5) 2  y 2  4.5 2
which is the equation of the circle with center (4.5,0) and radius 4.5 .

Example 7.9

3
Write in Cartesian form of the equation r  .
2  2 cos

Solution
We get
x
( x 2  y 2 ) (2  2 )3
(x2  y 2 )

2 (x 2  y 2 )  2x  3 .

4( x 2  y 2 )  4 x 2  12 x  9
This reduces to
y 2  3( x  3 / 4) .
This is the equation of a parabola with vertex V (3 / 4,0) , directrix x  3 / 2 , and length of latus
rectum 6.

Example 7.10
Find the polar equation of the parabola x 2  12( y  3) .

Solution
We have
r 2 cos 2   12(r sin   3)
r 2  r 2 sin 2   12r sin   36  0
This reduces to
6
r
1  sin 

This is the polar equation of a parabola with focus at the origin, directrix y=6.

It is now possible to get the polar equations of the general conic from the technique of
conversion of a Cartesian equation to a polar equation. This is demonstrated in the examples
below.

90
Example 7.11
Find the polar equation of the parabola y 2  4ax .

Solution
x x
Put r 2  x 2  y 2 and Cos   .
r x2  y2
This implies
r 2 (1  Cos 2 )  4arCos

Example 7.12
x2 y2
Find the polar equation of the ellipse 2  2  1
a b

Solution
x x
Put r 2  x 2  y 2 and Cos  
r x2  y2
x 2  r 2 Cos y 2  r 2 Sin 2
Hence
r 2 Cos 2 r 2 Sin
 1
a2 b2
Or
 
r 2 b 2 Cos 2  a 2 (1  Cos 2 )  a 2 b 2
Or
r 2 (b 2  (b 2  a 2 )Cos 2 )  a 2 b 2 .
This gives

a 2b 2 a 2b 2 b2
r2   
a 2  (a 2  b 2 )Cos 2 a 2  a 2 e 2 Cos 2 1  e 2 Cos 2

e is eccentricity of the ellipse.

Example 7.13
Find the polar equation of the ellipse x 2  9 y 2  9

91
Solution
In standard form, the equation is
x2 y2
 1
9 1
Hence a  3 and b  1 . This gives
a2  b2
e2   8/9
a2
1
r2 
8
1  Cos 2
9

Miscellaneous Exercises

1. Convert the Cartesian coordinates to polar coordinates

(a) (7,8) (b) (-3,2) (c) (1,1) (d) (-9,30)
2. Plot the given point and give two other polar representations of the point.
 
(a)  4, 
 2
 
(b)  5, 
 3
 
(c)  6,7 
 6
(d) (2,2 )
3. Find the distance between the two given points.
   
(a)  7,  ,  6, 
 3  4
 
(b) 12, , (1,  )
 6
   
(c)   6, ,   5, 
 2  4
   
(d) 10, ,   10, 
 9  5

92
 4. Convert the equation to polar form.
(a) 5 x  7 y  0
(b) x 2  y 2  5
(c) 6 x  9 y  0
(d) 5 x 2  3 y 2  15
(e) y 2  8 x  16  0
(e) 4 x 2  4 y 2  16 y  15  0
5. Convert the polar equation to rectangular form.
(a) r  3 sin 
(b) r  5 cos 
(c) r 2  sin 2
(d) r 2  2r (cos  sin  )  7  0
4
(e) r 
1  cos 
     
6. Find the lengths of the sides of a triangle whose vertices are  2,  ,   3,  ,   5, 
 8  4  2

7. Find the polar equation of the straight line through (3, -30 ) and parallel to the x-axis.
8. Find the equation of the circle with center (10, 60  ) and radius r  3 .
9. Find the equation of the circle with center (1, -30  ) and passes through (3, -30  ) and
(9, 45  )

Summary

In this chapter we have introduced the concept of polar coordinates. We have shown how to:
(a) A point on the plane can be presented in polar coordinates.
(b) How to change a polar equation to Cartesian and Cartesian to polar coordinates.
(c) Derive the polar equation of line, circle, and those of conic sections, namely the
parabola, ellipse and hyperbola.

Further Reading

7 L. Bostock, S. Chandler, and C. Rourke. Further Pure Mathematics.

Stanley Thornes (Publishers) Ltd, 1982.
8 R.E Larson and R.P. Hostetler. Precalculus. Houghton Mifflin
Company, 1997.
9 P.K. Jain and Khalil Ahmad. Analytical Geometry of Two
Dimensions. Wiley Eastern Limited, 1983.

93