sat suite question viewer
The three points shown define a circle. The circumference of this circle is , where is a constant. What is the value of ?
Explanation
Choice B is correct. It’s given that the three points shown define a circle, so the center of that circle is an equal distance from each of the three points. The point is halfway between the points and and is a distance of units from each of those two points. The point is also a distance of units from . Because the point is the same distance from all three given points, it must be the center of the circle. The radius of a circle is the distance from the center to any point on the circle. Since that distance is , it follows that the radius of the circle is . The circumference of a circle with radius is equal to . It follows that the circumference of the circle is , or . It's given that the circumference of the circle is . Therefore, the value of is .
Choice A is incorrect. This is the radius of the circle, not the value of in the expression .
Choice C is incorrect. This is the x-coordinate of the center of the circle, not the value of in the expression .
Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of for which represents the area of the circle, in square units, not the circumference of the circle, in units.