Project On Properties and Application of Parabola and Ellipse Color

Page 1 of 10
PROJECT
ON
PROPERTIES AND APPLICATION
OF
PARABOLA AND ELLIPSE
PREPARED
BY
PRATAP C SAHA
A.T. MURAGACHHA HIGH ( H.S.) SCHOOL
https://sites.google.com/site/muragachhahighhsschool
PROJECT ON PROPERTIES AND APPLICATION OF PARABOLA AND ELLIPSE PREPARED BY PRATAP C SAHA A.T. MURAGACHHA HIGH ( H.S.) SCHOOL
Page 2 of 10
PARABOLA
PROPERTIES AND APPLICATIONS
HISTORY
The parabola was studied by Menaechmus who was a pupil of Plato and
Eudoxus. He attempted to duplicate the cube, namely to find side of a cube that
has a volume double that of a given cube. Hence he attempted to solve x3 = 2 by
geometrical methods.
In fact the geometrical methods of ruler and compass constructions cannot
solve this (but Menaechmus did not know this). Menaechmus solved it by finding
the intersection of the two parabolas x2 = y and y2 = 2x.
Euclid wrote about the parabola and it was given its present name by
Apollonius. The focus and directrix of a parabola were considered by Pappus.
Pascal considered the parabola as a projection of a circle and Galileo showed
that projectiles follow parabolic paths.
The parabolic trajectory of projectiles was discovered experimentally by Galileo
Parabolic compass designed by Leonardo da Vinci in the early 17th century, who performed experiments with balls rolling on inclined
planes. He also later proved this mathematically in his book Dialogue Concerning
Two New Sciences.
Gregory and Newton considered the properties of a parabola which bring parallel
rays of light to a focus. The idea that a parabolic reflector could produce an image
was already well known before the invention of the reflecting telescope. Designs
were proposed in the early to mid seventeenth century by many mathematicians
including René Descartes, Marin Mersenne, and James Gregory. When Isaac
Newton built the first reflecting telescope in 1668 he skipped using a parabolic
mirror because of the difficulty of fabrication, opting for a spherical mirror.
Parabolic mirrors are used in most modern reflecting telescopes and in satellite
dishes and radar receivers.
DEFINITION
A parabola is the set of all points in the plane equidistant
from a given line L (the conic section directrix) and a given
point F not on the line (the focus).
The focal parameter (i.e., the distance between the
directrix and focus) is therefore given by p = 2a , where a is
the distance from the vertex to the directrix or focus. The
surface of revolution obtained by rotating a parabola about
its axis of symmetry is called a paraboloid. Parabola as conic section.
In the graph,
The focus of the parabola is at (a,0).
The directrix is the line x = a.
The focal distance is `|a|` (Distance from the origin to the
focus and from the origin to the directrix. We take absolute
value because distance is positive.)
The point (x, y) represents any point on the curve.
The distance d from any point (x, y) to the focus `(a, 0)`
is the same as the distance from (x, y) to the directrix.
Page 3 of 10
EQUATIONS OF PARABOLA
The general equation of PARABOLA derived from the general conic equation is :
Ax2 + Bxy + Cy2 + Dx + Ey + F = 0
and the fact that, for a parabola, B2 = 4AC
The equation for a general parabola with a focus point F(u, v) , and a directrix in the form
ax + by + c = 0 is

PROPERTIES OF PARABOLA
Reflective property of a parabola
The reflective property states that, if a parabola can reflect light, then light
which enters it travelling parallel to the axis of symmetry is reflected to the
focus.
Tangent bisection property
The diagram shows that the tangent BE bisects the angle FEC. In other
words, the tangent to the parabola at any point bisects the angle between
the lines joining the point to the focus, and perpendicularly to the directrix.
Intersection of a tangent and perpendicular from focus
The point of intersection between any tangent to a parabola and the
perpendicular from the focus to that tangent lies on the line that is
tangential to the parabola at its vertex.
Orthoptic property
If two tangents to a parabola are perpendicular to each other, then they
intersect on the directrix. Conversely, two tangents which intersect on the
directrix are perpendicular.
Perpendicular tangents intersect on the directrix
Page 4 of 10
Lambert's theorem
Three tangents to a parabola form a triangle. Then Lambert's theorem
states that the focus of the parabola lies on the circumcircle of the triangle.
THE USES AND APPLICATIONS OF PARABOLAS
The parabolic reflector, which is a mirror or similar reflective device that
concentrates light or other forms of electromagnetic radiation to a common
focal point, or conversely, collimates light from a point source at the focus
into a parallel beam. The principle of the parabolic reflector may have been
discovered in the 3rd century BC by the geometer Archimedes, who,
according to a legend of debatable veracity, constructed parabolic mirrors to
defend Syracuse against the Roman fleet, by concentrating the sun's rays
to set fire to the decks of the Roman ships. The principle was applied to
telescopes in the 17th century.
The principle of parabolic reflector is used for the car headlight, torches
etc. The light is placed in the focus of a parabolic mirror, as the light travels
and meets the mirror, it is reflected in lines parallel to the axis (in straight
lines ) as can be seen in the diagram. This is why the light beam from the
headlights of cars and from torches is so strong.
How Parabolic Dish Antennas work?
Point M is the point at which the ray hits the parabolic dish. “I” is the angle
made by the incident ray and the normal (in red) which is perpendicular to
the tangent (in blue) to the parabola at point M. r is the angle made by the
reflected ray and the normal. According to the laws of reflection, angles “I”
and “R” are equal.
All reflected rays due to incident rays, at different positions, intercept the
axis of the parabola y axis) at the same.
In parabolic microphones, a parabolic reflector that reflects sound, but not
necessarily electromagnetic radiation, is used to focus sound onto a
microphone, giving it highly directional performance.
Solar cooker with parabolic reflector
Page 5 of 10
PARABOLIC SKIS

A conventional ski which begins with a circular sidecut will deform under
load to a less than perfect arc. The parabolic design will deform under load
to a perfect arc resulting in a smooth turn. The result is that the ski only
has to be tipped on edge to turn flawlessly with a minimum of skier
exertion.
NATURAL OCCURRING PHENOMENA
A jet of water, like that formed by a fountain, forms the shape of a
parabola.
When a ball is struck in the air, it travels along a path in the shape of a

parabola.
Paraboloids are also observed in the surface of a liquid confined to a
container and rotated around the central axis. In this case, the centrifugal
force causes the liquid to climb the walls of the container, forming a
parabolic surface. This is the principle behind the liquid mirror telescope.
Shown here is a rectangular container with fluid inside, the container is
placed on a rotating table, when the table rotates the fluid inside take the
shape of a parabola.
In all cases in the physical world, the trajectory is always an
approximation of a parabola. The presence of air resistance, for example,
always distorts the shape, although at low speeds, the shape is a good
approximation of a parabola. At higher speeds, such as in ballistics, the
shape is highly distorted and does not resemble a parabola.
Longperiod comets travel close to the Sun's escape velocity while they
are moving through the inner solar system, so their paths are close to being
parabolic.
The path of Comet Kohoutek as it passed through the inner solar system,
showing its nearly parabolic shape. The other orbit is the Earth's

Page 6 of 10
ELLIPSE
PROPERTIES AND APPLICATIONS
HISTORY
The ellipse was first studied by Menaechmus. Euclid wrote about the ellipse and it was given its
present name by Apollonius.
The focus and directrix of an ellipse were considered by Pappus.
Kepler, in 1602, said he believed that the orbit of Mars was oval, then he later discovered that it
was an ellipse with the sun at one focus. In fact Kepler introduced the word "focus" and published
his discovery in 1609. The eccentricity of the planetary orbits is small (i.e. they are close to circles).
The eccentricity of Mars is 1/11 and of the Earth is 1/60.
In 1705 Halley showed that the comet, which is now called after him, moved in an elliptical orbit
round the sun. The eccentricity of Halley's comet is 0.9675 so it is close to a parabola.
The area of the ellipse is πab. There is no exact formula for the length of an ellipse in elementary
functions and this led to the study of elliptic functions. Ramanujan, in 1914, gave the approximate
Ellipse as conic section
length π(3(a + b) √[(a + 3b)(3a + b)]).
DEFINITION
In Euclidean geometry, the ellipse is usually defined as the bounded
case of a conic section, or as the set of points such that the sum of the
distances to two fixed points (the foci) is constant.
The ellipse can also be defined as the set of points such that the
distance from any point in that set to a given point in the plane (a focus)
is a constant positive fraction less than 1 (the eccentricity) of the
perpendicular distance of the point in the set to a given line (called the
directrix).
Yet another equivalent definition of the ellipse is that it is the set of
points that are equidistant from one point in the plane (a focus) and a
particular circle, the directrix circle (whose center is the other focus).
Ellipses have two mutually perpendicular axes A1A2 and B1B2 about
which the ellipse is symmetric These axes intersect at the center C of
the ellipse due to this symmetry. The larger of these two axes, which
corresponds to the largest distance between antipodal points on the
ellipse, is called the Major axis or Transverse diameter.
The smaller of these two axes, and the smallest distance across the
ellipse, is called the Minor axis or Conjugate diameter.

The four points where these axes cross the ellipse are the vertices and are marked as A1 , A2 , B1 and B2. In addition to being at
the largest and smallest distance from the center, these points are where the curvature of the ellipse is maximum and minimum.
The two foci (plural of focus and the term focal points is also used) of an ellipse are two special points F1 and F2 on the ellipse's
major axis that are equidistant from the center point. The sum of the distances from any point P on the ellipse to those two foci
is constant and equal to the major axis (PF1 + PF2 = 2a).
The distance to the focal point from the center of the ellipse is sometimes called the linear eccentricity, f, of the ellipse. Here it
is denoted by f, but it is often denoted by c.
Due to the Pythagorean theorem and the definition of the ellipse explained in the previous paragraph: f2 = a2 −b2.
The eccentricity of an ellipse, usually denoted by ε or e, is the ratio of the distance between the two foci, to the length of the
Page 7 of 10
major axis or e = 2f/2a = f/a. For an ellipse the eccentricity is between 0 and 1 (0 < e < 1). When the eccentricity is 0 the foci
coincide with the center point and the figure is a circle. As the eccentricity tends toward 1, the ellipse gets a more elongated
shape. It tends towards a line segment (see below) if the two foci remain a finite distance apart and a parabola if one focus F1 is
kept fixed as the other F2 is allowed to move arbitrarily far away. The eccentricity is also equal to the ratio of the distance from
any particular point P on an ellipse to one of the foci F2 to the perpendicular distance to the directrix from the same point (line
PD), e = PF2/PD.
EQUATIONS OF ELLIPSE
Ellipses centered at the origin
If the ellipse is centered on the origin (0,0) then the Cartesian equation is
And the parametric equations are x = a cos t
where a, b are the radius on the x and y axes respectively, t is the parameter, which ranges from
y = b sin t
0 to 2π radians.
The equations on this page are true only for ellipses that are aligned with the coordinate plane,
that is, where the major and minor axes are parallel to the coordinate system.
Ellipses not centered at the origin
If the Center of the ellipse is at ( h,k) then the Cartesian equation becomes

And the parametric equations are
Where a, b are the radius on the x and y axes respectively, t is the parameter, which ranges x = h + a cos t
from 0 to 2π radians. y = k + b sin t
The equation for a general ELLIPSE with a focus point F(u, v) , a directrix in the form ax + by + c = 0 and Eccentricity e
(e<1) is e2(ax + by + c)2 = (a2 + b2)[(x – u)2 + (y – v)2] where 0<e<1
PROPERTIES OF ELLIPSE
Focal property
One of the definitions of ellipse is that it is a locus of points the sum of
whose distances from the given two points is constant. The latter are called
the foci of the ellipse. Under other definitions, the distance preservation
becomes a property, among many others. As such, it is known as the
Focal property of the ellipse.
F1T + F2T = CONSTANT ( for any point T on the Ellipse)
Reflective (Optical) Property of an Ellipse
In an ellipse, lightrays from one focus will reflect to the other focus .
Page 8 of 10
Reflections in Ellipse
Choose two points T1, T2 on an ellipse. Imagine a light source at T1 sending
a ray of light in the direction of T2. Assuming the inner surface of the ellipse
fully reflective, the ray will bounce off at T2 and reach the ellipse again at T3
where it will bounce again and then again at point T4 and so on.
From Foci to a Tangent in Ellipse
The product of distances from the foci of an ellipse to any tangent is a
constant (not depending on the particular tangent.
Parallel Chords in Ellipse
Cross the ellipse by two parallel lines AB and CD, with points A, B, C, D
on the ellipse. Find the midpoints M and N of the segments AB and CD.
Line MN is incident to the center of the ellipse. Therefore by choosing a
pair of parallel lines with a different direction, the center of the ellipse is
found at the intersection of the two midlines.
Pascal in Ellipse
Pascal's theorem which B. Pascal has famously discovered at the age of
16 states that if a hexagon is inscribed in a conic, then the three points at
which the pairs of opposite sides meet are collinear.
The universality of the diagram led to the introduction of the term Pascal's
Mystic Hexagram that stuck around.
La Hire's Theorem in Ellipse
Let there be two points A and B outside an ellipse. From points A and B
draw tangents AC, AD, BE, BF to the ellipse. Then if B lies on CD, then A
lies on EF
Gergonne in Ellipse
The lines joining the points of tangency of the incircle with the opposing
vertices of a triangle concur in a point known as the Gergonne point or
Gergonne's center.
THE USES AND APPLICATIONS OF ELLIPSE
Page 9 of 10
The Reflective Property of an Ellipse
Now, apart from being mathematically interesting, what makes this property so
fascinating? Well, there are several reasons. Most notable of which is its
significance to physics, primarily optics and acoustics. Both light and sound
are affected in this way. In fact there are many famous buildings designed to
exploit this property. Such buildings are referred to as whisper galleries or
whisper chambers.
St. Paul's Cathedral in London, England was designed by architect and mathematician Sir Christopher Wren and contains one
such whisper gallery. Statuary Hall in the U.S. Capital building is elliptic. It was in this room that John Quincy Adams, while a
member of the House of Representatives, discovered this acoustical phenomenon. He situated his desk at a focal point of the
elliptical ceiling, easily eavesdropping on the private conversations of other House members located near the other focal point.
The effect that such a room creates is that if one person is standing at one of the foci, a person standing at the other focus can
hear even the slightest whisper spoken by the other.
ELLIPTICAL BILLIARDS TABLE
The elliptical billiards table uses the same principle as the whispering gallery
above. The pocket is positioned at one of the focal points. If one hits the ball so
that it goes through one focus, it will reflect off the ellipse and go into the hole
which is located at the other focus.
SATELLITES
All the planets orbiting the sun are satellites. These planets do not travel in a
circular motion as many people believe they do, but they travel in elliptical
orbits. The eccentricity of the earths orbit around the sun is approximately
0.0167, which is, as explained previously, almost circular. The planet Pluto has
an orbit with an eccentricity of approximately 0.2481. The moon travels around
the earth in an elliptical orbit also and so too do man made satellites.
LITHOTRIPSY
Ellipses are used for a medical process called lithotripsy. If we imagine an
ellipse as being made from a reflective material, than a ray emitted from one
focus reflects off the ellipse and passes through the second; a fact true for all
forms of energy, including shockwaves. In lithotripsy, which is the process of
using ultrasound to shatter kidney stones. The patient is placed in a elliptical
tank of water, with the kidney stone at one focus. Highenergy shock waves
generated at the other focus are concentrated on the stone, pulverizing it.
Some tanks are in fact elliptical (not circular) in cross section. This gives them
a high capacity, but with a lower centerofgravity, so that they are more stable
when being transported. And they're shorter, so that they can pass under a low
bridge. You might see these tanks transporting heating oil or gasoline on the
highway
Page 10 of 10
Ellipses (or halfellipses) are sometimes used as fins, or airfoils in structures
that move through the air. The elliptical shape reduces drag.

Project On Properties and Application of Parabola and Ellipse Color

Caricato da

Informazioni sul documento

Titolo originale

Copyright

Formati disponibili

Condividi questo documento

Condividi o incorpora il documento

Opzioni di condivisione

Hai trovato utile questo documento?

Questo contenuto è inappropriato?

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Project On Properties and Application of Parabola and Ellipse Color

Caricato da

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

Page 1 of 10

Potrebbero piacerti anche