McGraw Hill Glencoe Algebra 2, 2012
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McGraw Hill Glencoe Algebra 2, 2012 View details
Study Guide and Review
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Exercise 38 Page 648

If necessary, rewrite the equation. Then identify whether the ellipse is vertical or horizontal.

Center: (0,0)
Foci: (0 , sqrt(5)) and (0 ,- sqrt(5) )
Length of the Major Axis: 2sqrt(10) units
Length of the Minor Axis: 2sqrt(5) units
Graph:

Practice makes perfect

First, we need to rewrite this equation such that it fits the general equation of an ellipse. Horizontal Ellipse: & (x- h)^2/a^2 + (y- k)^2/b^2 = 1 [0.8em] Vertical Ellipse: & (y- k)^2/a^2 + (x- h)^2/b^2 = 1 Because the denominator of the y-variable is greater than the denominator of the x-variable, the equation represents a vertical ellipse. Let's rewrite the equation a bit to make it easier to identify the values of h, k, a, and b.

y^2/10+x^2/5=1
(y-0)^2/10+(x-0)^2/5=1

a = ( sqrt(a) )^2

(y- 0)^2/( sqrt(10))^2+(x- 0)^2/(sqrt(5))^2=1

Let's now use the equation to find the desired information.

Equation of the Vertical Ellipse (y- k)^2/a^2+(x- h)^2/b^2=1,
a and b positive, with a>b
(y- 0)^2/( sqrt(10))^2+(x- 0)^2/(sqrt(5))^2=1
Center ( h, k) ( 0, 0)
Length of Major Axis 2 a units 2 sqrt(10) units
Length of Minor Axis 2b units 2sqrt(5) units
Foci ( h, k± c),
c^2= a^2-b^2
( 0, 0± c),
c^2=( sqrt(10))^2-(sqrt(5))^2

Finally, let's calculate the value of c and find the foci.

c^2=( sqrt(10))^2-(sqrt(5))^2
â–¼
Solve for c
c^2=10-5
c^2=5
c=±sqrt(5)

Now we can add and subtract c to find the foci. Foci (0,0± sqrt(5)) ⇓ (0,sqrt(5)) and (0,- sqrt(5)) We will now use the information we found to draw the ellipse.