2016 AMC 10A Problems/Problem 21
Circles with centers and , having radii and , respectively, lie on the same side of line and are tangent to at and , respectively, with between and . The circle with center is externally tangent to each of the other two circles. What is the area of triangle ?
Contents
Solution 1
Notice that we can find in two different ways: and , so
. Additionally, . Therefore, . Similarly, . We can calculate easily because . .
Plugging into first equation, the two sums of areas, .
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Solution 2
Use the Shoelace Theorem.
Let the center of the first circle of radius 1 be at .
Draw the trapezoid and using the Pythagorean Theorem, we get that so the center of the second circle of radius 2 is at .
Draw the trapezoid and using the Pythagorean Theorem, we get that so the center of the third circle of radius 3 is at .
Now, we may use the Shoelace Theorem!
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Solution 3
and because they are the sum of two radii. and , the difference of the radii. Using pythagorean theorem, we find that and are and , .
Draw a perpendicular from to line , then we can use the Pythagorean theorem to find . . We get
To make our calculations easier, let . The semi-perimeter of our triangle is . Symbolize the area of the triangle with . Using Heron's formula, we have We can remove the outer root of a.
We solve the nested root. We want to turn into the square of something. If we have , then we get Solving the system of equations, we get and . Alternatively, you can square all the possible solutions until you find one that is equal to . ~ZericH
See Also
2016 AMC 10A (Problems • Answer Key • Resources) | ||
Preceded by Problem 20 |
Followed by Problem 22 | |
1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 | ||
All AMC 10 Problems and Solutions |
2016 AMC 12A (Problems • Answer Key • Resources) | |
Preceded by Problem 14 |
Followed by Problem 16 |
1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 | |
All AMC 12 Problems and Solutions |
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