Finding coordinates of a point on a circle( angle and distance from O known)

In summary, you are trying to find the equation of a line with a gradient m that goes through the point (x,y). If you knew the equation of the circle, you wouldn't be able to find P exactly.
  • #1
Wikeda
2
0
zn0sq9.jpg



1. I basicly have to find the coordinates of P. All the pink lines are know, coordinates of points A and centre of circle are know.


2. (x-a)^2 + (y-b)^2 = r^2


3. I try to substitute mx+c into the equation and get

(x-a)^2 + (y-mx-c)^2 + r^2= 0

but I can't work out what m and c are. Any help would be appreciated! Am I in the right direction, or am I completely off?
 
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  • #2
Wikeda said:
zn0sq9.jpg
1. I basicly have to find the coordinates of P. All the pink lines are know, coordinates of points A and centre of circle are know.2. (x-a)^2 + (y-b)^2 = r^23. I try to substitute mx+c into the equation and get

(x-a)^2 + (y-mx-c)^2 + r^2= 0

but I can't work out what m and c are. Any help would be appreciated! Am I in the right direction, or am I completely off?


I'm just going off what it looks like on the picture, but it looks as though P is the intersection between a line with gradient -1 going through the centre of the circle and the circle itself. Is this correct?

If so, what is the equation of a line with gradient m that goes through the point (a,b) ?

EDIT: And by the way, if you were trying to find where a general circle intersects with a general line, then you need to plug
[tex]y=mx+c[/tex] into the equation
[tex](x-a)^2+(y-b)^2=r^2[/tex]
to get
[tex](x-a)^2+(mx+c-b)^2=r^2[/tex]
And then you'll have an equation that you have a quadratic in x that you have to solve (all the other values are constants, so the answer will depend on what those are).
Once you've done that, you can plug that value of x back into the line equation to find y (you can also plug into the circle equation but it's harder work to solve for y there and you also get two values).
 
  • #3
Thank you for your response!
Actually The point P could be anywhere on the arch that is being formed by the circle, so the line doesn't intersects the centre of the circle.

I see now where I got it wrong, should have substituted y instead of b.

Thanks!
 
  • #4
Wikeda said:
Thank you for your response!
Actually The point P could be anywhere on the arch that is being formed by the circle, so the line doesn't intersects the centre of the circle.

I see now where I got it wrong, should have substituted y instead of b.

Thanks!

Well then, if you knew the equation of the circle, you won't know P exactly because it obviously will change depending on how high up the circle it is. The equations are still correct though :smile:
 

FAQ: Finding coordinates of a point on a circle( angle and distance from O known)

1. What is the equation for finding the coordinates of a point on a circle?

The equation for finding the coordinates of a point on a circle is (x,y) = (rcosθ, rsinθ), where r is the radius of the circle and θ is the angle from the positive x-axis.

2. How do you find the angle of a point on a circle?

To find the angle of a point on a circle, you can use the inverse trigonometric functions. For example, if the coordinates of the point are (3,4) and the radius is 5, the angle can be found by using the formula θ = cos^-1(3/5) = 53.13°.

3. Can the distance from the center of the circle affect the coordinates of a point on the circle?

Yes, the distance from the center of the circle (radius) is a crucial factor in determining the coordinates of a point on the circle. The farther the point is from the center, the larger the values of x and y will be.

4. What if the angle is negative in the equation for finding coordinates on a circle?

In the equation (x,y) = (rcosθ, rsinθ), the angle θ can be positive or negative depending on the direction of rotation from the positive x-axis. If the angle is negative, it means the point is located in the opposite direction from the positive x-axis, and the coordinates will have negative values.

5. Is it possible to find the coordinates of a point on a circle if the radius is unknown?

No, the radius is a crucial component in finding the coordinates of a point on a circle. Without knowing the radius, it is not possible to determine the exact location of the point on the circle.

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