Dynamic Geometry: P44

Geometry Level 5

The diagram shows a triangle. The green side is always equal to 8 8 and the red side is always equal to 15 15 . The common point to the red and pink sides does not move, the pink side grows and shrinks because the common point to the blue and pink sides move horizontaly. The circumcenter (black point) traces a locus (blue curve). It bounces between two points, cyan and orange. When the circumcenter is at the cyan point, the circumradius is its minimum possible. When the circumcenter is at the orange point, the area of the triangle is its maximum possible. The cyan segment is perpendicular to the pink side. The area bounded by the blue curve, the orange segment, and the cyan segment can be expressed as a b c a-b\sqrt{c} where a a , b b and c c are positive integers and c c is square-free. Find a + b + c a+b+c .


The answer is 193.

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1 solution

Chew-Seong Cheong
Feb 18, 2021

Label the triangle as A B C ABC such that C A = b = 15 CA=b=15 and B C = a = 8 BC=a=8 . Let A A be the origin ( 0 , 0 ) (0,0) of the x y xy -plane with A B AB along the x x -axis, O ( x , y ) O(x,y) be the variable circumcenter, and C = θ \angle C = \theta .

Then by cosine rule , c 2 = a 2 + b 2 2 a b cos θ = 289 240 cos θ c^2 = a^2 + b^2 - 2ab \cos \theta = 289 - 240 \cos \theta . Since circumcenter O O is where the three perpendicular side dividers meet, x = c 2 = 1 2 289 240 cos θ x = \dfrac c2 = \dfrac 12 \sqrt{289-240 \cos \theta} .

Let the circumradius be \R). Then 2 R = c sin θ R = x sin θ 2R = \dfrac c{\sin \theta} \implies R = \dfrac x{\sin \theta} . By Pythagorean theorem :

y 2 = R 2 x 2 = x 2 sin 2 θ x 2 = x 2 cot 2 θ y = x cos θ sin θ y^2 = R^2 - x^2 = \frac {x^2}{\sin^2 \theta} - x^2 = x^2 \cot^2 \theta \implies y = \frac {x \cos \theta}{\sin \theta}

Since 2 R = b sin B 2R = \dfrac b{\sin B} , R R is minimum, when B = 9 0 B=90^\circ (see Dynamic Geometry: P43 ). Then θ = cos 1 8 15 \theta = \cos^{-1} \dfrac 8{15} . Since the area of A B C \triangle ABC is given by A = a b sin θ 2 A_\triangle = \dfrac {ab\sin \theta}2 , A A_\triangle is maximum, when θ = π 2 \theta = \dfrac \pi 2 (see Dynamic Geometry: P42 ). The area bounded by the blue locus of O O , the cyan line and orange line is:

A = x a x b y d x = x a x b x cos θ sin θ d x = cos 1 5 18 π 2 1 2 289 240 cos θ cos θ sin θ 240 sin θ d θ 4 289 240 cos θ = cos 1 5 18 π 2 30 cos θ d θ = 30 sin θ cos 1 8 15 π 2 = 30 30 161 15 = 30 2 161 \begin{aligned} A & = \int_{x_a}^{x_b} y \ dx = \int_{x_a}^{x_b} \frac {x \cos \theta}{\sin \theta} \ dx \\ & = \int_{\cos^{-1}\frac 5{18}}^\frac \pi 2 \frac 12 \sqrt{289-240\cos \theta} \cdot \frac {\cos \theta}{\sin \theta} \cdot \frac {240 \sin \theta \ d\theta}{4\sqrt{289-240\cos \theta}} \\ & = \int_{\cos^{-1}\frac 5{18}}^\frac \pi 2 30 \cos \theta \ d\theta \\ & = 30 \sin \theta \ \bigg|_{\cos^{-1}\frac 8{15}}^\frac \pi 2 = 30 - 30 \cdot \frac {\sqrt{161}}{15} = 30 - 2\sqrt{161} \end{aligned}

Therefore the required answer is 30 + 2 + 161 = 193 30+2+161 = \boxed{193} .

@Chew-Seong Cheong , thank you for posting, I hope you liked it.

Valentin Duringer - 3 months, 3 weeks ago

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This one is interesting. The integral is so simple.

Chew-Seong Cheong - 3 months, 3 weeks ago

Thank you again !

Valentin Duringer - 3 months, 3 weeks ago

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