Difference between revisions of "Brahmagupta's Formula"
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Brahmagupta's formula reduces to [[Heron's formula]] by setting the side length <math>{d}=0</math>. | Brahmagupta's formula reduces to [[Heron's formula]] by setting the side length <math>{d}=0</math>. | ||
− | + | A similar formula which Brahmagupta derived for the area of a general quadrilateral is | |
+ | <cmath>[ABCD]^2=(s-a)(s-b)(s-c)(s-d)-abcd\cos{\frac{B+D}{2}}</cmath> | ||
+ | <cmath>[ABCD]=\sqrt{(s-a)(s-b)(s-c)(s-d)-abcd\cos{\frac{B+D}{2}}}</cmath> | ||
+ | where <math>s=\frac{a+b+c+d}{2}</math> is the [[semiperimeter]] of the quadrilateral. What happens when the quadrilateral is cyclic? | ||
[[Category:Geometry]] | [[Category:Geometry]] | ||
{{stub}} | {{stub}} | ||
[[Category:Theorems]] | [[Category:Theorems]] |
Revision as of 16:16, 4 May 2009
Brahmagupta's Formula is a formula for determining the area of a cyclic quadrilateral given only the four side lengths.
Definition
Given a cyclic quadrilateral with side lengths , , , , the area can be found as:
where is the semiperimeter of the quadrilateral.
Proof
If we draw , we find that . Since , . Hence, . Multiplying by 2 and squaring, we get:
\[4[ABCD]}^2=\sin^2 B(ab+cd)^2\] (Error compiling LaTeX. Unknown error_msg)
Substituting results in By the Law of Cosines, . , so a little rearranging gives
Similar formulas
Bretschneider's formula gives a formula for the area of a non-cyclic quadrilateral given only the side lengths; applying Ptolemy's Theorem to Bretschneider's formula reduces it to Brahmagupta's formula.
Brahmagupta's formula reduces to Heron's formula by setting the side length .
A similar formula which Brahmagupta derived for the area of a general quadrilateral is where is the semiperimeter of the quadrilateral. What happens when the quadrilateral is cyclic? This article is a stub. Help us out by expanding it.