Within a circle, chords are equidistant from the center if and only if they are congruent.
34.6
Practice makes perfect
In the given diagram, we can see that the radius is equal to 20. Notice that a radius bisects a chord. Therefore, they are perpendicular.
Within a circle, chords are equidistant from the center if and only if they are congruent. Since the chords in the given diagram are equidistant from the center, they are congruent. Therefore, they have the same length.
Now, let's draw a radius in order to have a right triangle. Keep in mind that since the radius is constant, its length is always 20.
Finally, we will pay close attention to the right triangle we have just drawn.
To find the value of x, we will substitute these values into the Pythagorean Theorem.
