Question

What is the area of an equilateral triangle with a side length of 12 inches?

Answer 1

The area is about 62.4 inches (squared)

Explanation:

You can use Pythagorean theorem in order to find the height of the triangle.
First, split the triangle into two identical right-angled ones, which have the following dimensions:
H = 12in. X = 6in. Y = ?
(Where H is the hypotenuse, X is the base, Y is the height of the triangle.)

Now we can use Pythagorean theorem in order to find the height.
`a^2+b^2=c^2`
`6^2+b^2=12^2`
`sqrt(b^2)=sqrt(144-36)`
b = 10.39in.
Using the formula for a triangle's area,

`(bh)/2`

`(12(10.39))/2`

= 62.35
= 62.4 inches