Browse · harp
Printsmc
geometry senior
Problem
Circles with centers and have radii and , respectively. The equation of a common external tangent to the circles can be written in the form with . What is ? 
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)
Solution
Let be the line that goes through and , and let be the line . If we let be the measure of the acute angle formed by and the x-axis, then . clearly bisects the angle formed by and the x-axis, so . We also know that and intersect at a point on the x-axis. The equation of is , so the coordinate of this point is . Hence the equation of is , so , and our answer choice is .
Final answer
E