Lesson 1.

Introduction to Conic
Sections

Precalculus / Basic Calculus

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
What does each conic section
look like?

2
 Conic Sections

Conic sections are obtained from the intersection between

a double-napped cone and a plane.

3
 Parabola

Parabolas are formed when the plane is parallel to the

generating line of one cone.

4
 Ellipse

Ellipses are formed when the plane intersects the one cone at
an angle other than 90°.

5
 Hyperbola

Hyperbolas are formed when the plane is parallel to the axis

of revolution or the 𝑦-axis.

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 Circle

Circles are formed when the intersection of the plane is

perpendicular to the axis of revolution.

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 Degenerate Conic Sections

Degenerate conic sections are formed when a plane

intersects the cone in such a way that it passes through the
apex.

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 Degenerate Conic Sections

Two Intersecting lines

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 Degenerate Conic Sections

Single Line

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 Degenerate Conic Sections

Single Point

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Degenerate Conic Sections

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 Common Parts of the Conic Sections

Vertex (with horizontal axis)

- an extreme point on a parabola, hyperbola, and ellipse

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 Common Parts of the Conic Sections

Vertex (with vertical axis)

- an extreme point on a parabola, hyperbola, and ellipse

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 Common Parts of the Conic Sections

Focus and Directrix (with horizontal axis)

These are the point and the line on a conic section that are
used to define and construct the curve, respectively.

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 Common Parts of the Conic Sections

Focus and Directrix (with vertical axis)

These are the point and the line on a conic section that are
used to define and construct the curve, respectively.

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 Common Parts of the Conic Sections

Center
It is the midpoint between the two foci of an ellipse and
hyperbola.

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 Common Parts of the Conic Sections

Center

For circles, center is the point

equidistant from any point on
the surface.

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 Let’s Practice!

If a cone shaped pita bread was

cut as shown in the figure on
the right, which curve will be
formed between the
intersection of the knife and the
pita bread?

19
 Let’s Practice!

If a cone shaped pita bread was cut as shown in the

figure below, which curve will be formed between the
intersection of the knife and the pita bread?

parabola

20
 Let’s Practice!

Given the curve on the

Cartesian plane, identify
the vertex, focus, and
directrix.

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 Let’s Practice!

Given the curve on the Cartesian plane, identify the

vertex, focus, and directrix.

Vertex : (𝟎, 𝟎) ; Focus : (𝟑, 𝟎) ; Directrix : 𝒙 = −𝟑

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 Let’s Practice!

Identify the coordinates of the foci and center of

the graph below.

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 Let’s Practice!

Identify the coordinates of the foci and center of the

graph below.

Foci : (−𝟐, −𝟑) , (𝟔, −𝟑) ; Center : (𝟐, −𝟑)

24
 Let’s Practice!

Plot the curve of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis Missouri, United
States on a Cartesian plane if its vertex is at the origin, with a focus at
(𝟎, −𝟑). Give the type of conic and solve for its directrix.

25
 Let’s Practice!

Plot the curve of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis Missouri, United
States on a Cartesian plane if its vertex is at the origin, with a focus
at (𝟎, −𝟑). Give the type of conic and solve for its directrix.

26
 Let’s Practice!

Plot the curve of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis Missouri,

United States on a Cartesian plane if its vertex is at the
origin, with a focus at (𝟎, −𝟑). Give the type of conic and
solve for its directrix.

The directrix is 𝒚 = 𝟑.

27
Lesson 1.2

Definition and Equation

of a Circle

Precalculus
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Have you ridden a Ferris
wheel before? One
distinguishable fact
about this ride is that it is
circular in shape and the
points along the outer rim
of the wheel have equal
distances from the center.

29
When can we say that a figure is a
circle?

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 Circle

Recall that a circle is formed

when a plane perpendicular to
the axis intersects a double-
napped cone.

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 Circle

The set of points in a plane,

which are all equidistant from
a given point, called the
center, forms a circle.
center

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 Circle

Any segment with endpoints

at the center and a point on
the circle is a radius of the
circle. 𝑨 𝑪
radius

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 Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

Any segment with endpoints at

the center and a point on the
circle is a radius (𝒓) of the circle.

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 Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

Given the coordinates of a point

on the circle as 𝑥, 𝑦 and the
center of the circle at ℎ, 𝑘 , 𝑟
may be calculated using the
distance formula.

𝑟= 𝑥−ℎ 2 + 𝑦−𝑘 2

35
 Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

Squaring both sides of the equation used to calculate the

radius, we get the standard form of equation of a circle
given by

𝟐 𝟐 𝟐
𝒙−𝒉 + 𝒚−𝒌 = 𝒓

where (ℎ, 𝑘) is the center and 𝑟 is the radius of the circle.

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Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

With Center at (𝒉, 𝒌) With Center at the Origin

𝑥−ℎ 2 + 𝑦−𝑘 2 = 𝑟2 𝑥2 + 𝑦2 = 𝑟2

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Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟏𝟔

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Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟗

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Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟒

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Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟏

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Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟎. 𝟐𝟓

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What do you think will happen to
the graph of a circle if 𝒓 = 𝟎?
𝟐

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 Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

If 𝑟 2 = 0, then the graph is

a single point (not a circle).

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What do you think will happen to
the graph of a circle if 𝒓 < 𝟎?
𝟐

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 Equation of a Circle in Standard Form

If 𝑟 2 < 0, then there is no

graph since 𝑟 is imaginary.

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at the origin

and a radius of 10 units.

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at the origin

and a radius of 10 units.

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 = 𝟏𝟎𝟎

48
 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at (−𝟑, −𝟏)

and a radius of 𝟔 units.

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at (−𝟑, −𝟏)

and a radius of 𝟔 units.

𝟐 𝟐
𝒙+𝟑 + 𝒚+𝟏 =𝟔

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the center and the radius of the circle whose

equation is (𝒙 − 𝟏𝟎)𝟐 +(𝒚 + 𝟖)𝟐 = 𝟒𝟗.

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the center and the radius of the circle whose

equation is (𝒙 − 𝟏𝟎)𝟐 +(𝒚 + 𝟖)𝟐 = 𝟒𝟗.

The center of the circle is at (𝟏𝟎, −𝟖), and its radius

measures 𝟕 units.
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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at (𝟓, −𝟔) and
tangent to y-axis

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at (𝟓, −𝟔) and
tangent to y-axis

(𝒙 − 𝟓)𝟐 +(𝒚 + 𝟔)𝟐 = 𝟐𝟓

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at (𝟓, −𝟔) and
tangent to x-axis

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle with center at (𝟓, −𝟔) and
tangent to x-axis

(𝒙 − 𝟓)𝟐 +(𝒚 + 𝟔)𝟐 = 𝟑𝟔

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle that has diameter with

endpoints A(-1,4) and B(4,2)

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the equation of the circle that has diameter with

endpoints A(-1,4) and B(4,2)

(𝒙 − 𝟑/𝟐)𝟐 +(𝒚 − 𝟑)𝟐 = 𝟐𝟗/𝟒

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Tip

To identify the center of the circle given by

the equation 𝑥 − 10 2 + 𝑦 + 8 2 = 49, we
can simply get the additive inverse of
− 10 and 8. Therefore, the center of the
circle is at (10, −8).

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 Equation of a Circle in General Form

When the standard form of equation of a circle is expanded,

and the terms are arranged in decreasing order of powers, we
get the general form of equation of a circle given by

𝟐 𝟐
𝑨𝒙 + 𝑩𝒚 + 𝑪𝒙 + 𝑫𝒚 + 𝑬 = 𝟎
where 𝐴, 𝐵, 𝐶, 𝐷, 𝐸 ∈ ℝ, 𝐴 = 𝐵, and 𝐴 and 𝐵 are not zero at the
same time.

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 Let’s Practice!

Identify the center and the radius of the circle defined

by the equation 𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 + 𝟒𝒙 − 𝟔𝒚 + 𝟑 = 𝟎 .

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 Let’s Practice!

Identify the center and the radius of the circle defined

by the equation 𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 + 𝟒𝒙 − 𝟔𝒚 + 𝟑 = 𝟎 .

The center is at (−𝟐, 𝟑), and the radius is 𝟏𝟎.

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the general form of the circle illustrated below.

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 Let’s Practice!

Find the general form of the circle illustrated below.

𝒙𝟐 + 𝒚𝟐 − 𝟖𝒙 − 𝟒𝒚 + 𝟏𝟏 = 𝟎
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 Situational Problems Involving Circles
Let’s Practice!
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? Round off to 2 decimal
places.
 Situational Problems Involving Circles
Let’s Practice!
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? Round off to 2 decimal
places.