Circle A has a center at #(3 ,1 )# and a radius of #1 #. Circle B has a center at #(-2 ,1 )# and a radius of #3 #. Do the circles overlap? If not, what is the smallest distance between them?
1 Answer
Mar 5, 2016
no overlap. distance = 1 unit.
Explanation:
The first step is to calculate the distance between the centres.
Here both centres have a y-coord = 1 , hence the line joining the centres is parallel to the x-axis
and it's length = 3 - (-2) = 3+ 2 = 5
now radius of A + radius of B = 1 + 3 = 4 which is < 5
hence there is no overlap.
distance between them = 5 - 4 = 1