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Exercise 10.4 · Q11

Q.Find the equation of the hyperbola satisfying the given conditions: Foci (0,±13)(0, \pm 13), the conjugate axis is of length 2424.

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The foci are vertical, so the hyperbola is of the form y2a2−x2b2=1\frac{y^2}{a^2} - \frac{x^2}{b^2} = 1. The conjugate axis length 2b=242b = 24 gives b=12b = 12, and the focal distance c=13c = 13 gives a2=c2−b2=25a^2 = c^2 - b^2 = 25. The equation is y225−x2144=1\frac{y^2}{25} - \frac{x^2}{144} = 1.

The first thing to notice is where the foci lie. They are at (0,±13)(0, \pm 13), which means they are on the yy-axis. For a hyperbola, the foci always lie on the transverse axis — the axis that goes through the two branches. So here, the transverse axis is vertical (along the yy-axis), and the conjugate axis is horizontal (along the xx-axis).

That tells us the standard form we need. For a vertical transverse axis, the hyperbola's equation is:

y2a2−x2b2=1\frac{y^2}{a^2} - \frac{x^2}{b^2} = 1

Here aa is the distance from the center to each vertex (along the yy-axis), and bb is the distance from the center to each endpoint of the conjugate axis (along the xx-axis). The foci are at (0,±c)(0, \pm c), where cc is related to aa and bb by c2=a2+b2c^2 = a^2 + b^2.

Now, the problem gives us two pieces of data: the foci and the length of the conjugate axis.

  1. Find cc from the foci.

    The foci are (0,±13)(0, \pm 13), so the distance from the center (0,0)(0,0) to each focus is c=13c = 13.

  2. Find bb from the conjugate axis length.

    The conjugate axis is the segment perpendicular to the transverse axis, passing through the center. Its length is 2b2b. We are told this length is 2424, so:

2b=24⇒b=122b = 24 \quad\Rightarrow\quad b = 12

  1. Use the relationship c2=a2+b2c^2 = a^2 + b^2 to find a2a^2. For a hyperbola, cc is the largest of the three numbers. We have:

c2=a2+b2c^2 = a^2 + b^2

132=a2+12213^2 = a^2 + 12^2

169=a2+144169 = a^2 + 144

a2=25a^2 = 25 …

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