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Conic Section
A conic section is a curve
obtained at the intersection of the
surface of a cone with a plane. The
three types of conic sections are
the hyperbola, the parabola, and
the ellipse. The circle is type of
ellipse, and is sometimes
considered a fourth type of conic
section.

Conic sections can be generated by intersecting a plane with a cone. A cone has two
identically shaped parts called nappes. One nappe is what most people mean by “cone,” and
has the shape of a party hat.

Conic sections are generated by the intersection of a plane with a cone. If the plane is
parallel to the axis of revolution (the y-axis), then the conic section is a hyperbola. If the
plane is parallel to the generating line, the conic section is a parabola. If the plane is
perpendicular to the axis of revolution, the conic section is a circle. If the plane intersects
one nappe at an angle to the axis (other than 90∘), then the conic section is an ellipse.

Common Parts of Conic Sections

While each type of conic section looks very different, they have some features in common.
For example, each type has at least one focus and directrix.

A focus is a point about which the conic section is constructed. In other words, it is a point
about which rays reflected from the curve converge. A parabola has one focus about which
the shape is constructed; an ellipse and hyperbola have two.
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A directrix is a line used to construct and define a conic section. The distance of a directrix
from a point on the conic section has a constant ratio to the distance from that point to the
focus. As with the focus, a parabola has one directrix, while ellipses and hyperbolas have
two.

The properties that the conic sections share are often presented as the following definition,
which will be developed further in the following section. A conic section is the locus of
points PP whose distance to the focus is a constant multiple of the distance from PP to the
directrix of the conic. These distances are displayed as orange lines for each conic section in
the following diagram.

Parts of conic sections: The three conic sections with foci and directrices labeled.
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Types of Conic Section

 Parabola

A parabola is the set of all points whose distance from a fixed point, called the focus, is equal
to the distance from a fixed line, called the directrix. The point halfway between the focus
and the directrix is called the vertex of the parabola.
In the next figure, four parabolas are graphed as they appear on the coordinate plane. They
may open up, down, to the left, or to the right.
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A parabola is formed when the plane is parallel to the surface of the cone, resulting in a U-
shaped curve that lies on the plane. Every parabola has certain features:

 A vertex, which is the point at which the curve turns around

 A focus, which is a point not on the curve about which the curve bends
 An axis of symmetry, which is a line connecting the vertex and the focus which divides the
parabola into two equal halves

All parabolas possess an eccentricity value e=1e=1. As a direct result of having the same
eccentricity, all parabolas are similar, meaning that any parabola can be transformed into any other
with a change of position and scaling. The degenerate case of a parabola is when the plane just
barely touches the outside surface of the cone, meaning that it is tangent to the cone. This creates a
straight-line intersection out of the cone’s diagonal.
Non-degenerate parabolas can be represented with quadratic functions such as f(x)=x2

Exercises:
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 Ellipses

An ellipse is the set of all points for which the sum of the distances from two fixed points
(the foci) is constant. In the case of an ellipse, there are two foci, and two directrices.

In the next figure, a typical ellipse is graphed as it appears on the coordinate plane.

When the plane’s angle relative to the cone is between the outside surface of the cone and
the base of the cone, the resulting intersection is an ellipse. The definition of an ellipse includes
being parallel to the base of the cone as well, so all circles are a special case of the ellipse. Ellipses
have these features:

 A major axis, which is the longest width across the ellipse

 A minor axis, which is the shortest width across the ellipse
 A center, which is the intersection of the two axes
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 Two focal points —for any point on the ellipse, the sum of the distances to both focal points
is a constant

Ellipses can have a range of eccentricity values: 0≤e<1. Notice that the value 0 is included
(a circle), but the value 1 is not included (that would be a parabola). Since there is a range of
eccentricity values, not all ellipses are similar. The general form of the equation of an ellipse with
major axis parallel to the x-axis is:

Where (h, k) are the coordinates of the center, 2a is the length of the major axis, and 2b is the
length of the minor axis. If the ellipse has a vertical major axis, the a and b labels will switch places.
The degenerate form of an ellipse is a point, or circle of zero radius, just as it was for the circle.

Exercises:
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 Hyperbolas

A hyperbola is the set of all points where the difference between their distances from two fixed
points (the foci) is constant. In the case of a hyperbola, there are two foci and two directrices.
Hyperbolas also have two asymptotes.

A graph of a typical hyperbola appears in the next figure.

A hyperbola is formed when the plane is parallel to the cone’s central axis, meaning it intersects both
parts of the double cone. Hyperbolas have two branches, as well as these features:

 Asymptote lines—these are two linear graphs that the curve of the hyperbola approaches, but
never touches
 A center, which is the intersection of the asymptotes
 Two focal points, around which each of the two branches bend
 Two vertices, one for each branch
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The general equation for a hyperbola with vertices on a horizontal line is:

Where (h, k) are the coordinates of the center. Unlike an ellipse, a is not necessarily the larger axis
number. It is the axis length connecting the two vertices.
The eccentricity of a hyperbola is restricted to e>1, and has no upper bound. If the eccentricity is
allowed to go to the limit of +∞ (positive infinity), the hyperbola becomes one of its degenerate
cases—a straight line. The other degenerate case for a hyperbola is to become its two straight-line
asymptotes. This happens when the plane intersects the apex of the double cone.

Exercises:
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 Circle

A circle is formed when the plane is parallel to the base of the cone. Its intersection with the cone is
therefore a set of points equidistant from a common point (the central axis of the cone), which
meets the definition of a circle. All circles have certain features:

 A center point
 A radius, which the distance from any point on the circle to the center point

All circles have an eccentricity e=0e=0. Thus, like the parabola, all circles are similar and can be
transformed into one another. On a coordinate plane, the general form of the equation of the circle
is

(x – h )2 + (y – k )2 = r2 ]

Where (h, k) are the coordinates of the center of the circle, and r is the radius.
The degenerate form of the circle occurs when the plane only intersects the very tip of the cone.
This is a single point intersection, or equivalently a circle of zero radius.

Exercises:
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Solutions for all exercises

 Parabola

 Ellipse
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 Hyperbola

 Circle