Learning Competencies

At the end of the lessons, the learner can:

1. Illustrate the different types of conic sections: parabola, ellipse, circle, hyperbola, and degenerate
cases;
2. define a circle;
3. determine the standard form of equation of a circle;
4. solve situational problems involving conic sections (circles).

Basic Key Concepts

Overview of Conic Sections

A Conic section (or simply conic) is a figure formed by the intersection of a plane and a double right
circular cone.

The table below shows how the following conic sections are formed through intersecting a plane to a
double right circular cone.

1. Circle
- when the plane cuts the double right circular cone perpendicularly to the
axis or when the plane intersects the double right circular cone
horizontally.

2. Parabola
- when the plane intersects the cone parallel to its outside edge to form an
unbounded curve.

3. Ellipse
- when the plane intersects only one cone all the way through to form a
bounded curve but not parallel nor perpendicular to its axis of symmetry.

4. Hyperbola
- This happens when the plane intersects (not necessarily vertical) both
cones to form two unbounded curves.

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However, when the plane intersects the cone through the vertex, the resulting figure is called a
degenerate conic: a point, one line, and two intersecting lines, as shown.

Photo Source: https://bit.ly/2TgMlqH

Definition and Equation of a Circle

The set of all points 𝑃 having the same distance from a fixed point 𝐶 is called a circle, where
𝐶 is the center and the common distance is the radius of the circle.
Let 𝐶 (ℎ, 𝑘) be the center of the circle and 𝑃(𝑥, 𝑦) be any point on the circle
with radius 𝑟 > 0. Using the distance formula, the standard equation of
the circle with center (ℎ, 𝑘) is
𝒓
|𝑃𝐶| = 𝑟
√ 𝑥 − ℎ + 𝑦 − 𝑘 )2 = 𝑟
( ) 2 (

(𝒙 − 𝒉 )𝟐 + (𝒚 − 𝒌 )𝟐 = 𝒓𝟐

If the center of the circle is at the origin, then ℎ = 0 and 𝑘 = 0. The standard
equation is

𝒙 𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝒓𝟐 .

Examples:

Give the standard equation of the circle satisfying the following conditions.

1. Center at the origin, radius 6

2. Center (−2,3), radius √3
3. Has a diameter with endpoints (−1, −2) and (5, 4)
4. Center (1, 7), tangent to the 𝑥-axis

Solutions:

1. The standard equation of the circle with center at the origin (0,0) and radius 𝑟, is

𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 = 𝑟2.

Substituting the given radius 𝑟 = 6, the equation becomes

𝒙 𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟔𝟐 or 𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟑𝟔.

2. The standard equation of the circle with center (ℎ, 𝑘) and radius 𝑟, is

(𝑥 − ℎ )2 + (𝑦 − 𝑘 )2 = 𝑟 2 .

Substituting the given center (−2,3) and radius 𝑟 = √3, the equations becomes

𝟐 𝟐
(𝒙 − (−𝟐)) + (𝒚 − 𝟑)𝟐 = (√𝟑) or (𝒙 + 𝟐)𝟐 + (𝒚 − 𝟑)𝟐 = 𝟑.

3. Note that the midpoint of the diameter is the center. Hence, using the given endpoints (−1, −2) and
(5, 4), and applying the midpoint formula, we have

𝑥1 +𝑥2 𝑦1 +𝑦2
Midpoint = ( 2
,2
)
−1+5 −2+4
=( 2
, 2
), where (𝑥1 , 𝑦1 ) = (−1, −2) and (𝑥2 , 𝑦2 ) = (5,4)
4 2
= (2 , 2)
= (2, 1).

Thus, the center is (2, 1). Now, note that the radius is the distance from the center to any of the given
endpoints of the diameter. So, applying the distance formula,

𝑟 = √(𝑥2 − 𝑥1 )2 + (𝑦2 − 𝑦1 )2
= √(5 − 2)2 + (4 − 1)2 , where (𝑥2 , 𝑦2 ) = (5,4) and (𝑥1 , 𝑦1 ) = (2,1)
= √18.

Therefore, the standard equation is

𝟐
(𝒙 − 𝟐)𝟐 + (𝒚 − 𝟏)𝟐 = (√𝟏𝟖) or (𝒙 − 𝟐)𝟐 + (𝒚 − 𝟏)𝟐 = 𝟏𝟖
 4. The center (1, 7) is 7 units away from the 𝑥-axis, so the radius is 7 (this can be verified by sketching the
graph of the circle). Thus, the standard equation is given by

(𝒙 − 𝟏)𝟐 + (𝒚 − 𝟕)𝟐 = 𝟒𝟗.

General Form of Equation of a Circle

If we expand the standard equation of a circle, the equation will be of the form

𝑨𝒙𝟐 + 𝑨𝒚𝟐 + 𝑪𝒙 + 𝑫𝒚 + 𝑬 = 𝟎, 𝑨≠𝟎

or
𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 + 𝑪𝒙 + 𝑫𝒚 + 𝑬 = 𝟎.

This is the general form of equation of the circle.

Examples:

Identify the center and radius of the circle with the given equation in each item. Sketch its graph and indicate its
center.

1. 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 − 6𝑥 = 7
2. 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 − 14𝑥 + 2𝑦 + 14 = 0
3. 16𝑥 2 + 16𝑦 2 + 96𝑥 − 40𝑦 − 315 = 0

Solutions:

To solve the given problems, we need to transform the given equations into their standard form by following
these steps:

a. Group and Factor

− Group the 𝑥 and 𝑦 terms within parentheses, and isolate the constant term to the right-hand side of
the equation.
− If the coefficients of 𝑥 2 and 𝑦 2 is a number other than 1, factor out that number from the group.
b. Complete the Squares
− Complete the squares for the 𝑥 and 𝑦 groups by adding the square of the half of the coefficients of
𝑥 and 𝑦 terms to both sides of the equation.
c. Factor and Simplify
− Factor the perfect square trinomials obtained in 𝑥 and 𝑦 groups.
− Simplify the right-hand side of the equations.

1. 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 − 6𝑥 = 7

(𝑥 2 − 6𝑥 ) + 𝑦 2 = 7 Grouping 𝑥 and 𝑦 terms, and isolating the constant term to

the Righ-Hand Side (RHS) of the equation

(𝑥 2 − 6𝑥 + 9) + 𝑦 2 = 7 + 9 Completing the square for 𝑥 group -- adding the square of the

−6 2
half of the coefficient of 𝑥, that is, ( ) = (−3)2 = 9. There’s
2
no need to complete the square for 𝑦, since 𝑦 2 is already a
perfect square.

(𝑥 − 3)2 + 𝑦 2 = 16 Factoring the Left-Hand Side (LHS) of the equation and

simplifying the RHS of the equation.

Hence, the circle has a center (3,0) and radius 𝑟 = √16 = 4. (See Figure 1)

2. 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 − 14𝑥 + 2𝑦 + 14 = 0

(𝑥 2 − 14𝑥 ) + (𝑦 2 + 2𝑦) = −14 Group and isolate

(𝑥 2 − 14𝑥 + 49) + (𝑦 2 + 2𝑦 + 1) = −14 + 49 + 1 Applying completing the square for 𝑥 and 𝑦

groups
(𝑥 − 7)2 + (𝑦 + 1)2 = 36 Factor and simplify
 Hence, the circle has a center (7, −1) and radius 𝑟 = √36 = 6. (See Figure 2)

3. 16𝑥 2 + 16𝑦 2 + 96𝑥 − 40𝑦 − 315 = 0

(16𝑥 2 + 96𝑥) + (16𝑦 2 − 40𝑦) = 315 Group and isolate

5 Factor out the leading

16(𝑥 2 + 6𝑥) + 16 (𝑦 2 − 𝑦) = 315 coefficients in 𝑥 and 𝑦
2 groups.

5 25 25 Complete the squares

16(𝑥 2 + 6𝑥 + 9) + 16 (𝑦 2 − 𝑦 + ) = 315 + 16(9) + 16 ( ) Note:
2 16 16 A common mistake
committed by students
25
is to add 9 and 16 only.
They often forget the
multiplier outside the
parenthesis.
5 2
16(𝑥 + 3)2 + 16 (𝑦 − ) = 484 Factor and simplify
4
2
5 484
(𝑥 + 3)2 + (𝑦 − ) = Divide both sides by 16
4 16
2
5 121
(𝑥 + 3)2 + (𝑦 − ) = Simplify
4 4

5 121 11
Hence, the circle has a center (−3, 4) and radius 𝑟 = √ = . (See Figure 3)
4 2

Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3

Given the general form of the equation of a circle 𝐴𝑥 2 + 𝐴𝑦 2 + 𝐶𝑥 + 𝐷𝑦 + 𝐸 = 0, the center and radius can be
solve using the following formulas:

𝑪 𝑫 𝟏 𝑪 𝟐 𝑫 𝟐 𝑬
Center = (− 𝟐𝑨 , − 𝟐𝑨) and Radius = 𝟐 √(𝑨) + ( 𝑨 ) − 𝟒 (𝑨)

Situational Problems involving Circles

Problem No. 1

A street with two lanes, each 10 ft wide, goes through a

semicircular tunnel with radius 12 ft. How high is the tunnel at the edge of
each lane? Assume that the center of the semicircular tunnel is at the
origin.

Solution:

We know that the tunnel is semicircular with center (0,0) and radius 12. Hence, the tunnel’s boundary can be
represented by the equation

𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 = 122 ⟹ 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 = 144.

Now, point 𝑃 is the point on the arc just above the edge of the lane, so its 𝑥 – coordinate is 10. We need the
value of 𝑦 > 0. By substitution, we have
 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 = 144 ⟹ (10)2 + 𝑦 2 = 144
100 + 𝑦 2 = 144
𝑦 2 = 144 − 100
𝑦 2 = 44
𝑦 = ±√44.

Thus, the height of the tunnel at the edge of the lane is 𝑦 = √44 = 2√11 = 6.63 ft.

Problem No. 2

A ferris wheel is elevated 1 m above ground. When a car reaches the highest
point on the ferris wheel, its altitude from ground level is 31 m. How far away
from the center, horizontally, is the car when it is at an altitude of 25 m? Assume
that the 𝑥 – axis lies on the ground and the 𝑦 – axis lies along the center of the
ferris wheel.

Solution:

The ferris wheel as shown in the figure is 1 unit above the 𝑥 – axis (ground level), centered at the 𝑦 – axis, and
the highest point at 𝑦 = 31. Hence, the diameter of the circle is 30. It follows that the radius (half of the diameter)
is 15. We then locate the center of the circle at (0,16). So, the circle can be represented by the equation

𝑥 2 + (𝑦 − 16)2 = 152 ⟹ 𝑥 2 + (𝑦 − 16)2 = 225.

Now, to find the distance of the car from the center, horizontally, when it is at an altitude of 25 meters, we
substitute 𝑦 = 25 to the equation, that is,

𝑥 2 + (𝑦 − 16)2 = 225 ⟹ 𝑥 2 + (25 − 16)2 = 225

𝑥 2 + 81 = 225
𝑥 2 = 225 − 81
𝑥 2 = 144
𝑥 = ±12.

Therefore, the car is 12 m away from the center, horizontally, when it is at an altitude of 25 m.