CONIC SECTIONS
Tutorial Manual
MUT
Maths 1
, 1 Conic Sections
Learning Outcomes
After completing this section, you should be able to
Sketch the graph of an ellipse with the centre at the origin
Find the standard form of the equation of an ellipse with the centre at the
origin
Identify vertices, major axis, minor axis, foci and use these to find the
equation of an ellipse
Introduction
From your lectures, you know that an ellipse is part of a family of curves called
conic sections. Other members of this family include the hyperbola, parabola,
circle, etc. However, for purposes of the Mathematics 1 module, the only conic
section to be analysed is an ellipse with its centre at the origin.
Let’s remind ourselves about the forms of ellipses.
Ellipse
When centred at the origin, the ellipse is in either of the 2 forms described below.
a. Major axis along the x-axis
1
Tutorial Manual
MUT
Maths 1
, 1 Conic Sections
Learning Outcomes
After completing this section, you should be able to
Sketch the graph of an ellipse with the centre at the origin
Find the standard form of the equation of an ellipse with the centre at the
origin
Identify vertices, major axis, minor axis, foci and use these to find the
equation of an ellipse
Introduction
From your lectures, you know that an ellipse is part of a family of curves called
conic sections. Other members of this family include the hyperbola, parabola,
circle, etc. However, for purposes of the Mathematics 1 module, the only conic
section to be analysed is an ellipse with its centre at the origin.
Let’s remind ourselves about the forms of ellipses.
Ellipse
When centred at the origin, the ellipse is in either of the 2 forms described below.
a. Major axis along the x-axis
1
