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For example, to study the equations of ellipses and hyperbolas, the foci are usually located on one of the axes and are situated symmetrically with respect to the origin. If the curve (hyperbola, parabola , ellipse, etc.) is not situated conveniently with respect to the axes, the coordinate system should be changed to place the curve at a ...
A systematic solution for the paths of geodesics was given by Legendre (1806) and Oriani (1806) (and subsequent papers in 1808 and 1810). The full solution for the direct problem (complete with computational tables and a worked out example) is given by Bessel (1825). During the 18th century geodesics were typically referred to as "shortest lines".
The pins-and-string construction of an ellipsoid is a transfer of the idea constructing an ellipse using two pins and a string (see diagram). A pins-and-string construction of an ellipsoid of revolution is given by the pins-and-string construction of the rotated ellipse. The construction of points of a triaxial ellipsoid is more complicated.
If it helps any, here are the problem and the answers the author and I got: The ellipse (x^2 / a^2) + (y^2 / b^2) = 1, a > b is rotated about the x-axis to form a surface called an ellipsoid. Find the surface area of this ellipsoid.
The classic applications of elliptic coordinates are in solving partial differential equations, e.g., Laplace's equation or the Helmholtz equation, for which elliptic coordinates are a natural description of a system thus allowing a separation of variables in the partial differential equations. Some traditional examples are solving systems such ...
The Rytz’s axis construction is a basic method of descriptive geometry to find the axes, the semi-major axis and semi-minor axis and the vertices of an ellipse, starting from two conjugated half-diameters. If the center and the semi axis of an ellipse are determined the ellipse can be drawn using an ellipsograph or by hand (see ellipse).
If the ellipse is rotated about its major axis, the result is a prolate spheroid, elongated like a rugby ball. The American football is similar but has a pointier end than a spheroid could. If the ellipse is rotated about its minor axis, the result is an oblate spheroid, flattened like a lentil or a plain M&M.
since they are ellipses rotated about the z-axis, which separates their foci. An ellipse in the x-z plane (Figure 2) has a major semiaxis of length a cosh μ along the x-axis, whereas its minor semiaxis has length a sinh μ along the z-axis. The foci of all the ellipses in the x-z plane are located on the x-axis at ±a.