Mathematics
Education
EMAT 6680,
Professor Wilson
Exploration Number 7, Tangent Circles by Ursula Kirk
Case 1
We start the
exploration with two circles, one with a center at O and the other with a
center to O’ and a point on one of the circles.
We choose
point D on the biggest circle as our point of tangency.
We
construct a circle with a center at D and the same radius that circle O’.
We construct a line
that passes through OD and marks point C. Then, we connect points O’C with a
segment, and we find the point of this segment at E. From midpoint E we
construct a segment bisector. The segment bisector will intercept OC at F.
Joining
O’ and F with a line segment will help us construct a triangle CFO’
With a center at F and
a radius FD, we can construct a circle that is tangent to both circle O and
circle O’, our original circles.
Case 2
Similar to case 1, we
can construct a second case, case 2. In the second case, circle H is also
tangent to circle O’ and circle O.
Considering
these two cases, we can form ellipses and hyperbolas by tracing points F and H
Ellipses
Case 1
In geometry an ellipse is the locus traced by a point moving
in a plane so that the sum of its distances from two other points called foci
is a constant. The foci are located on the ellipse’s major axis. Our foci for
case 1 are at O’ and O. The ellipse is found by tracing the locus of point F.
Since the sum of the distances from any point of the ellipse
to O and O’ is constant and equal to the major diameter, then OF+O’F is
constant as well
Case 2
Similarly, for case 2, we can also find our ellipse by
tracing the locus of point H. In this case my foci are also points O and O’.
Hyperbolas
In geometry a hyperbola is the locus of a point where the
absolute value of the difference of the distance to the foci is constant.
Case 1
In case 1, the locus of the hyperbola is formed by tracing
point F and the foci are at O and O’ which are the centers of our original
circles. Therefore |OF-O’F| is a constant.
Case 2
Similarly, for case 2, we find the locus of the hyperbola by
tracing point H and the foci of our hyperbola are O and O’.
