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Brazil geometry

Problem

The vertex of the triangle is allowed to vary along a line parallel to . Find the locus of the orthocenter.
Solution
Take axes so that , and . Then the orthocenter lies on the line . The line has gradient , so the perpendicular has gradient . Hence the altitude from has equation . So the intersection is . So the locus is all or part of the parabola . But we can get an orthocenter with any x-coordinate (by taking to have the same x-coordinate), so we can get all points on the parabola.
Final answer
The locus is the entire parabola b y = a^2 − x^2, in coordinates with A = (−a, 0), B = (a, 0), and C moving along y = b.

Techniques

Triangle centers: centroid, incenter, circumcenter, orthocenter, Euler line, nine-point circleCartesian coordinatesConstructions and loci