Area of an Oblique Triangle

Area of an Oblique Triangle The method that we will use to determine the area of an oblique triangle requires knowing the measurement of two sides of the triangle and the included angle (SAS). ABC if b and c are the known sides and The formula used to calculate the area of A is the included angle is:
Area = 1 bc sin A 2

Example 1: Determine the area of the following triangle: Solution 1:

1 ac sin B 2 1 Area = (14.1)(13.6 ) sin 410 2 Area = 62.90cm 2 Area =

Example 2: Determine the area of the following triangle: The lengths of the three sides are known but the measure of an included angle must be determined. Choose one angle and use the Law of Cosines to find its measure. Solution 2:
b2 + c2 a2 2bc ( 8.4) 2 + ( 8.1) 2 ( 4.8) 2 cos A = 2( 8.4 )( 8.1) cos A = .8313 cos A = cos 1 ( cos A) = cos 1 (.8313) A = 33.8 0

1 bc sin A 2 1 Area = ( 8.4)( 8.1) sin 33.8 0 2 Area = 18.93cm 2 Area =

If another angle were chosen, there may be a slight variation in the area of the triangle.

This is the result of rounding values for the function(s) and any measurements that were calculated. Exercises: 1. Your backyard is a great spot to build a skating rink this winter. The ground must be covered with sand that costs $16 per square metre. If the sides of the triangular plot of land measure 8.24m., 7.67m. and 8.13m., what will be the cost of the sand needed to cover this area? 2. 1Josh, Mary and Evan are playing frisbee in the school field. Their current positions form a triangle with the angle at Josh equal to 44o and the angle at Mary equal to 21o. If Mary is 15 metres from Evan, what is the area of the triangular plot formed by Josh, Mary and Evan?

Solutions: 1.
b2 + c2 a2 2bc 2 2 2 ( 8.13) + ( 7.67 ) ( 8.24 ) cos A = 2( 8.13)( 7.67 ) cos A = .4572 cos A = cos 1 ( cos A) = cos 1 (.4572 ) A = 62.8 0

1 bc sin A 2 1 Area = ( 8.13)( 7.67 ) sin 62.8 0 2 2 2 2 ) = $448.00 ( 28 m )($ 16m /m Area = 27 .73 Area =

The cost of the sand is

Area = 28m 2

2. In a previous exercise, we solved this problem to determine the distance between Mary and Josh. This distance was 19.57m.
1 ej sin M 2 1 Area = (19.57 )(15) sin 210 2 Area = 52.6m 2 Area =