3.

5 Circles
3.5.1 Equations of circles
3.5.2 Tangents
3.5.3 Problems

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apart from some questions taken from O&C Additional Mathematics examination papers and awaiting copyright
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1
3.5.1 Equations of circles
The equation of a circle cannot be written in the form y = …
We must use an implicit equation.

The equation of a circle, centre the origin, radius r, is x2 + y2 = r2

The equation of a circle, centre (h, k) radius r, is (x – h)2 + (y – k)2 = r2
This can be multiplied out to the form x2 + y2 + ax + by + c = 0

Notes. The coefficients of x and y are the same.

There is no xy term.
r2 must be positive (or zero, in which case it represents a single point)

Example. Write the equation of the circle with centre (2, –3) and radius 5 in the form
x2 + y2 + ax + by + c = 0.
Solution. (x – 2)2 + (y + 3)2 = 52
x2 – 4x + 4 + y2 + 6y + 9 = 25
x2 + y2 – 4x + 6y – 12 = 0.

Example. Find the centre and radius of the circle with equation x2 + y2 + 8x – 6y – 11 = 0.
Solution. Complete the square for both x and y.
x2 + y2 + 8x – 6y – 11 = x2 + 8x + y2 – 6y – 11
= (x + 4) – 16 + (y – 3) – 9 – 11
2 2

Therefore (x + 4)2 – 16 + (y – 3)2 – 9 – 11 = 0

(x + 4)2 + (y – 3)2 = 36
and the centre is (–4, 3), the radius is 6.

Notes. The centre is (–½ the x-coordinate, –½ the y coordinate).

If you have been taught a formula for the radius, make a note of it here:

2 © St Paul’s School 2015

 3.5.1: Equations of circles

Exercise 0

Complete the following according to each example.

Ex: x2 – 6x = (x – 3)2 – 9

1 x2 – 8x = _________________ 2 x2 + 10x = _________________

3 x2 – 12x = _________________ 4 x2 – 3x = _________________

Ex: x2 – 6x + y2 – 4y = (x – 3)2 – 9 + (y – 2)2 – 4

5 x2 – 8x + y2 – 14y = _________________________________________________

6 x2 + 10x + y2 + 6y = _________________________________________________

7 x2 – 12x + y2 – 3y = _________________________________________________

Ex: x2 – 6x + y2 – 4y – 3 = 0
 (x – 3)2 – 9 + (y – 2)2 – 4 – 3 = 0
 (x – 3)2 + (y – 2)2 = 16

8 x2 – 8x + y2 – 14y + 1 = 0

 ______________________________________________

 ______________________________________________

9 x2 + 10x + y2 + 6y – 2 = 0

 ______________________________________________

 ______________________________________________

10 x2 – 12x + y2 – 3y – 4 = 0

 ______________________________________________

 ______________________________________________

11 Write down the centre and radius of the circles with the equations in questions 8– 10.

12 Find the centre and radius of the following circles.

(i) x2 + y2 – 2x – 8y + 8 = 0
(ii) x2 + y2 + 10x – 4y – 7 = 0
(iii) x2 + y2 + 6x + y – 3 = 0
(iv) x2 + y2 + 5x + 12y = 0

3 © St Paul’s School 2015

3.5.1: Equations of circles

Exercise 1

1 Write down the equation of a circle, centre (0, 0), radius 8.

2 Write down and simplify the equation of a circle, centre (5, –2), radius 3.

3 Write down and simplify the equations of the circles:

(i) with centre (4, –2), through (2, 6),
(ii) with centre (3, 4), through the origin.

4 Find the equation of a circle for which the points A(1, 7) and B(9, –3) are the ends of a
diameter.

5 Write down the centre and radius of the circles with equations:
(i) x2 + y2 = 16 (ii) 4x2 + 4y2 = 49.

6 Write down the centre and radius of the circle with equation (x – 3)2 + (y + 4)2 = 36.

7 Write down the centre of the circle with equation x2 + y2 – 4x – 10y – 7 = 0.

8 Write the expression x2 + y2 – 4x – 10y – 7 in the form (x – 2)2 + (y – 5)2 – c = 0.

Hence find the radius of the circle with equation x2 + y2 – 4x – 10y – 7 = 0.

9 Find the centres and radii of these circles:

(a) x2 + y2 – 10x + 12y – 3 = 0
(b) x2 + y2 – 8x – 14y + 64 = 0
(c) x2 + y2 – 7x + 24y + 46 = 0
(d) 4x2 + 4y2 – 20x + 12y – 15 = 0.

10 Which of the following represent circles? Explain.

(a) x2 + y2 – 4x + 6xy + 7 = 0
(b) x2 + y2 – 4x + 6y + 17 = 0 (what is its radius?)
(c) (x + y)2 + (x – y)2 = 18

11 Determine whether the points A(2, 1) and B (3, –1) lie inside, outside or on the circle
with equation (x – 5)2 + (y + 2)2 = 16.

12 Find the coordinates of the points where the circle with equation
x2 + y2 – 6x + 8y = 0
intersects the x- and y-axes.

4 © St Paul’s School 2015

3.5.2 Tangents
You cannot find the equation of a tangent by differentiating (why not?).
Instead you must find the gradient of the radius.

Example. Find the equation of the tangent to the circle x2 + y2 + 8x – 6y – 17 = 0 at the

point (2, 7).

Solution. The centre is (–4, 3).

73 2
The gradient of the radius is  .
2  (4) 3
3
The gradient of the tangent is  .
2
3 3
The equation of the line through (2, 7) with gradient  is (y – 7) =  (x – 2).
2 2
This simplifies to 3x + 2y = 20.

Most problems involving circles can be solved by using familiar geometry, and finding the
centre and radius. You may need to use results like “the angle in a semicircle is a right angle”.

Exercise 2

In this exercise you should give all your answers in the form ax + by = c.

1 Find the equation of the tangent to the circle x2 + y2 = 20 at the point (4, 2).

2 Find the equation of the tangent to the circle x2 + y2 – 2x + 6y = 0 at (0, 0).

3 Find the equations of the tangents to the circle

x2 + y2  8x  8y + 7 = 0:
(a) at the point (8, 7),
(b) at each of the points where y = 0.

4 Find the equations of the tangents to the circle

x2 + y2 + 6x  10y – 40 = 0:
(a) at the point (4, 10),
(b) at each of the points where x = 2,
(c) parallel to the tangent at (4, 10).

5 Find the lengths of the tangents to the circle

x2 + y2 – 4x + 6y – 12 = 0
from the point (14, 2).

5 © St Paul’s School 2015

3.5.3 Problems (mostly from O&C Additional Mathematics)

Give all equations of tangents in a form without fractions.

1 Two circles have equations

x2 + y2  4x + 12y + 4 = 0
x2 + y2 + 8x  4y + 4 = 0
(i) Determine whether the circles intersect in no point, one point or two points.
(ii) Interpret what you get when you subtract one equation from the other.
[You should consider what would happen if “+ 4” were changed to,
say, “+ 6” in both equations.]

2 The triangle OAB has vertices O(0, 0), A(4, 0) and B(–4, –4).
(i) Find the equations of the perpendicular bisectors of OA and OB.
(ii) Find the coordinates of the point C where these two perpendicular bisectors
meet.
(iii) Find the equation of the circle whose centre is C and which passes through O.
(iv) Verify that that A and B also lie on this circle.

3 Find the centre and radius of the circle with equation x2 + y2 – 8x + 24y – 9 = 0. Find
also the points of intersection of this circle and the line x = –1, and show that the
distance between these points is 24 units.
Write down the equation of the tangent at the point (–1, 0) and find the
x-coordinate of the point where it meets the line y = –12.

4 Calculate the equation of the circle with centre at the point A(4, 2) which touches the
straight line 3y – 4x + 35 = 0.
The circle meets the y-axis at the points B and C. Calculate the length of BC
and the coordinates of the points of intersection of the tangents at B and C.

5 Find the centres and radii of the circles

x2 + y2 – 8x – 4y – 5 = 0
x2 + y2 + 10x + 20y + 25 = 0,
and deduce that the circles touch one another. If the line of centres meets the circles in
the points A, B, C (in that order), find the equation of the circle which has AC as
diameter. Give the answer in the same form as that of the two given circles.

6 Two circles have centres at the points (8, 4) and (2, –4), their radii are equal, and they
touch externally. Find the radii of the two circles, the coordinates of the point where
they touch, and the equation of the common tangent at this point.
Verify that the point (–7, 9) lies on this tangent, and prove that the radius of the
circle whose centre is (–7, 9) and which touches the two original circles externally is
approximately 10.8 units.

6 © Oxford and Cambridge Examinations

 3.5.2: Circles – problems

7 A and B are points with coordinates (1, 2) and (4, 8) respectively. Find the equation of
the path of the point P which moves so that PA = 2PB. Show that this locus is a circle
by finding its centre and radius.
Show that the locus of the point P which moves such that PL = kPM, where L
and M are two fixed points and k is a constant greater than 1, is a circle.
[This locus is known as the Circle of Apollonius.]

8 Find the centre and radius of the circle with equation

x2 + y2 – 10x – 8y + 32 = 0.
Find the angle between the tangents to the circle that pass through the origin.

9 A circle has equation

x2 + y2 – 4x + 6y – 19 = 0.
(i) Find the values of c for which the line y = x + c is tangent to the circle.
(ii) Find the equations of the two tangents perpendicular to these tangents.

10 Two circles have equations

x2 + y2 – 4x + 6y – 3 = 0
x2 + y2 + 8x – 2y – 8 = 0
(i) Show that the two circles intersect.
(ii) If the points of intersection are A and B, and the centres of the circles are P and
Q, calculate the size of angle PAQ.

11 Find the equations of the tangents to the circle

x2 + y2 – 10x – 8y + 28 = 0
at the points where x = 8.

12 Show that the line y = mx meets the circle x2 + y2 + gx + fy + c = 0 if

(g + fm)2  4c(1 + m2).

13 By writing the equation of a line through (2, 3) as y = m(x – 2) + 3, show that the
gradients m of the tangents from (2, 3) to the circle x2 + y2 = 4 satisfy
m2(3 – 2m)2 = (1 + m2)(4m2 – 12m + 5).
This equation reduces to 5 – 12m = 0. Does this mean that there is only one tangent to
the circle from this point?

14 Investigate the shape of curves with equations ax2 + by2 = 1 and ax2 – by2 = 1.

7 © Oxford and Cambridge Examinations

Revision Exercise 3.5

1 Find and simplify the equations of the circles:

(i) with centre (0, 0), radius 7
(ii) with centre (3, –2), radius 8
(iii) with centre (0, 0), through (4, 1)
(iv) with centre (–1, 5) through (0, 0)
(v) on (–3, 1) and (5, 5) as ends of a diameter.

2 Find the centre and radius of each of the following circles:

(i) x2 + y2 – 6x + 2y – 6 = 0
(ii) x2 + y2 + 8x – 10y + 5 = 0
(iii) 4x2 + 4y2 + 4x – 20y + 17 = 0

3 Find the equations of the tangents to the circles at the points shown. Give your
answers in the form ax + by = c.
(i) x2 + y2 = 20 at (4, –2)
(ii) x2 + y2 – 4x + 6y = 0 at the point (0, 0)

4 Find the point where the tangents to the circle x2 + y2 = 25 at the points (4, –3) and
(4, 3) meet.

8 © St Paul’s School 2015

 Circles Prep
Give all equations of tangents in the form ax + by = c.

1 Find and simplify the equation of the circle with centre (3, –5), radius 2.

2 Find and simplify the equation of the circle with centre (–1, 4) through the point (2, 0).

3 Find the centre and radius of the circle with equation x2 + y2 – 6x + 2y – 15 = 0.

4 Find the equation of the tangent to the circle (x – 3)2 + (y – 2)2 = 25

(i) at the point (0, –2)
(ii) at the point (3, 7).

5 Determine whether the circles with equations

x2 + y2 – 6x + 2y – 15 = 0
x2 + y2 + 6x – 14y + 33 = 0
meet in two points, one point or no points.

6 Find the coordinates of the points where the circle with equation
x2 + y2 – 6x + 2y – 15 = 0
meets: (i) the line x + y = 9
(ii) the x-axis.

9 © St Paul’s School 2015