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Dissecting the right triangle along its altitude h yields two similar triangles, which can be augmented and arranged in two alternative ways into a larger right triangle with perpendicular sides of lengths p + h and q + h. One such arrangement requires a square of area h 2 to complete it, the other a rectangle of area pq. Since both ...
In a right triangle, the altitude drawn to the hypotenuse c divides the hypotenuse into two segments of lengths p and q. If we denote the length of the altitude by h c , we then have the relation h c = p q {\displaystyle h_{c}={\sqrt {pq}}} ( Geometric mean theorem ; see Special Cases , inverse Pythagorean theorem )
A right triangle ABC with its right angle at C, hypotenuse c, and legs a and b,. A right triangle or right-angled triangle, sometimes called an orthogonal triangle or rectangular triangle, is a triangle in which two sides are perpendicular, forming a right angle (1 ⁄ 4 turn or 90 degrees).
An altitude of a triangle is a straight line through a vertex and perpendicular to the opposite side. This opposite side is called the base of the altitude, and the point where the altitude intersects the base (or its extension) is called the foot of the altitude. [23] The length of the altitude is the distance between the base and the vertex.
In the case of a right triangle, its altitude is the length of a line extending perpendicularly from the hypotenuse to its 90° vertex. Imagining that this line splits the hypotenuse into two segments, the geometric mean of these segment lengths is the length of the altitude. This property is known as the geometric mean theorem.
The best known and simplest formula is = /, where b is the length of the base of the triangle, and h is the height or altitude of the triangle. The term "base" denotes any side, and "height" denotes the length of a perpendicular from the vertex opposite the base onto the line containing the base.
In a right triangle, the length of a cathetus is the geometric mean of the length of the adjacent segment cut by the altitude to the hypotenuse and the length of the whole hypotenuse. By the Pythagorean theorem, the sum of the squares of the lengths of the catheti is equal to the square of the length of the hypotenuse.
The altitudes of similar triangles are in the same ratio as corresponding sides. If a triangle has a side of length b and an altitude drawn to that side of length h then a similar triangle with corresponding side of length kb will have an altitude drawn to that side of length kh.