Extend the segment that goes from the center of the circle to the chord and draw a diameter. If the chord and the diameter are perpendicular, then the diameter bisects the chord.
8
Practice makes perfect
In the given diagram, we can extend the segment that goes from the center of the circle to the chord, and draw a diameter.
Since the chord and the diameter are perpendicular, we know that the diameter bisects the chord. This fact will help us find lengths later in the exercise. Now, let's draw a radius to create a right triangle. Keep in mind that since the radius is constant, its length is always colIV17.
Finally, we will pay close attention to the right triangle we have just drawn. Since the segment we lengthened bisects the chord, we know that the length of one of the legs of the right triangle is 15.
Chord length/Bisected → 30/2= 15
The length of the hypotenuse 17. We want to find the length of the other leg, x.
To find the value of x, we will substitute these values into the Pythagorean Theorem.
