Trigonometry

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Trigonometry

 Outline
 History
 Usage
 Functions (inverse)
 Generalized trigonometry

Reference

 Identities
 Exact constants
 Tables
 Unit circle

Laws and theorems

 Sines
 Cosines
 Tangents
 Cotangents
 Pythagorean theorem

Calculus
  Trigonometric substitution
 Integrals (inverse functions)
 Derivatives

 v
 t
 e

Trigonometry (from Ancient Greek τρίγωνον (trígōnon) 'triangle',

and μέτρον (métron) 'measure')[1] is a branch of mathematics that studies
relationships between side lengths and angles of triangles. The field emerged in
the Hellenistic world during the 3rd century BC from applications
of geometry to astronomical studies.[2] The Greeks focused on the calculation of
chords, while mathematicians in India created the earliest-known tables of values for
trigonometric ratios (also called trigonometric functions) such as sine.[3]
Throughout history, trigonometry has been applied in areas such
as geodesy, surveying, celestial mechanics, and navigation.[4]
Trigonometry is known for its many identities. These trigonometric identities[5][6] are
commonly used for rewriting trigonometrical expressions with the aim to simplify an
expression, to find a more useful form of an expression, or to solve an equation.[7]

Contents

 1History
 2Trigonometric ratios
o 2.1Mnemonics
o 2.2The unit circle and common trigonometric values
 3Trigonometric functions of real or complex variables
o 3.1Graphs of trigonometric functions
o 3.2Inverse trigonometric functions
o 3.3Power series representations
o 3.4Calculating trigonometric functions
o 3.5Other trigonometric functions
 4Applications
o 4.1Astronomy
o 4.2Navigation
o 4.3Surveying
o 4.4Periodic functions
o 4.5Optics and acoustics
o 4.6Other applications
 5Identities
o 5.1Triangle identities
 5.1.1Law of sines
 5.1.2Law of cosines
 5.1.3Law of tangents
 5.1.4Area
o 5.2Trigonometric identities
 5.2.1Pythagorean identities
 5.2.2Euler's formula
  5.2.3Other trigonometric identities
 6See also
 7References
 8Bibliography
 9Further reading
 10External links

History
Main article: History of trigonometry

Hipparchus, credited with compiling the first trigonometric table, has been described as "the father of
trigonometry".[8]

Sumerian astronomers studied angle measure, using a division of circles into 360
degrees.[9] They, and later the Babylonians, studied the ratios of the sides
of similar triangles and discovered some properties of these ratios but did not turn
that into a systematic method for finding sides and angles of triangles. The ancient
Nubians used a similar method.[10]
In the 3rd century BC, Hellenistic mathematicians such
as Euclid and Archimedes studied the properties of chords and inscribed angles in
circles, and they proved theorems that are equivalent to modern trigonometric
formulae, although they presented them geometrically rather than algebraically. In
140 BC, Hipparchus (from Nicaea, Asia Minor) gave the first tables of chords,
analogous to modern tables of sine values, and used them to solve problems in
trigonometry and spherical trigonometry.[11] In the 2nd century AD, the Greco-
Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy (from Alexandria, Egypt) constructed detailed
trigonometric tables (Ptolemy's table of chords) in Book 1, chapter 11 of
his Almagest.[12] Ptolemy used chord length to define his trigonometric functions, a
minor difference from the sine convention we use today.[13] (The value we call sin(θ)
can be found by looking up the chord length for twice the angle of interest (2θ) in
Ptolemy's table, and then dividing that value by two.) Centuries passed before more
detailed tables were produced, and Ptolemy's treatise remained in use for performing
trigonometric calculations in astronomy throughout the next 1200 years in the
medieval Byzantine, Islamic, and, later, Western European worlds.
The modern sine convention is first attested in the Surya Siddhanta, and its
properties were further documented by the 5th century (AD) Indian
mathematician and astronomer Aryabhata.[14] These Greek and Indian works were
translated and expanded by medieval Islamic mathematicians. By the 10th century,
Islamic mathematicians were using all six trigonometric functions, had tabulated their
values, and were applying them to problems in spherical
geometry.[15][16] The Persian polymath Nasir al-Din al-Tusi has been described as the
creator of trigonometry as a mathematical discipline in its own right.[17][18][19] He was the
first to treat trigonometry as a mathematical discipline independent from astronomy,
and he developed spherical trigonometry into its present form.[20] He listed the six
distinct cases of a right-angled triangle in spherical trigonometry, and in his On the
Sector Figure, he stated the law of sines for plane and spherical triangles,
discovered the law of tangents for spherical triangles, and provided proofs for both
these laws.[21] Knowledge of trigonometric functions and methods reached Western
Europe via Latin translations of Ptolemy's Greek Almagest as well as the works
of Persian and Arab astronomers such as Al Battani and Nasir al-Din al-Tusi.[22] One
of the earliest works on trigonometry by a northern European mathematician is De
Triangulis by the 15th century German mathematician Regiomontanus, who was
encouraged to write, and provided with a copy of the Almagest, by the Byzantine
Greek scholar cardinal Basilios Bessarion with whom he lived for several years.[23] At
the same time, another translation of the Almagest from Greek into Latin was
completed by the Cretan George of Trebizond.[24] Trigonometry was still so little
known in 16th-century northern Europe that Nicolaus Copernicus devoted two
chapters of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium to explain its basic concepts.
Driven by the demands of navigation and the growing need for accurate maps of
large geographic areas, trigonometry grew into a major branch of
mathematics.[25] Bartholomaeus Pitiscus was the first to use the word, publishing
his Trigonometria in 1595.[26] Gemma Frisius described for the first time the method
of triangulation still used today in surveying. It was Leonhard Euler who fully
incorporated complex numbers into trigonometry. The works of the Scottish
mathematicians James Gregory in the 17th century and Colin Maclaurin in the 18th
century were influential in the development of trigonometric series.[27] Also in the 18th
century, Brook Taylor defined the general Taylor series.[28]

Trigonometric ratios
Main article: Trigonometric function

In this right triangle: sin A = a/h; cos A = b/h; tan A = a/b.

Trigonometric ratios are the ratios between edges of a right triangle. These ratios are
given by the following trigonometric functions of the known angle A,
where a, b and h refer to the lengths of the sides in the accompanying figure:
 Sine function (sin), defined as the ratio of the side opposite the angle to
the hypotenuse.

 Cosine function (cos), defined as the ratio of the adjacent leg (the side of the
triangle joining the angle to the right angle) to the hypotenuse.

 Tangent function (tan), defined as the ratio of the opposite leg to the
adjacent leg.

The hypotenuse is the side opposite to the 90 degree angle in a right

triangle; it is the longest side of the triangle and one of the two sides
adjacent to angle A. The adjacent leg is the other side that is adjacent to
angle A. The opposite side is the side that is opposite to angle A. The
terms perpendicular and base are sometimes used for the opposite and
adjacent sides respectively. See below under Mnemonics.
Since any two right triangles with the same acute
angle A are similar,[29] the value of a trigonometric ratio depends only on
the angle A.
The reciprocals of these functions are named
the cosecant (csc), secant (sec), and cotangent (cot), respectively:

The cosine, cotangent, and cosecant are so named because

they are respectively the sine, tangent, and secant of the
complementary angle abbreviated to "co-".[30]
With these functions, one can answer virtually all questions
about arbitrary triangles by using the law of sines and the law
of cosines.[31] These laws can be used to compute the
remaining angles and sides of any triangle as soon as two
sides and their included angle or two angles and a side or
three sides are known.
Mnemonics
Main article: Mnemonics in trigonometry
A common use of mnemonics is to remember facts and
relationships in trigonometry. For example, the sine, cosine,
and tangent ratios in a right triangle can be remembered by
representing them and their corresponding sides as strings of
letters. For instance, a mnemonic is SOH-CAH-TOA:[32]
Sine = Opposite ÷ Hypotenuse
Cosine = Adjacent ÷ Hypotenuse
Tangent = Opposite ÷ Adjacent
One way to remember the letters is to sound them
out phonetically (i.e. /ˌsoʊkəˈtoʊə/ SOH-kə-TOH-ə,
similar to Krakatoa).[33] Another method is to expand
the letters into a sentence, such as
"Some Old Hippie Caught Another Hippie Trippin' O
n Acid".[34]
The unit circle and common
trigonometric values
Main article: Unit circle

Fig. 1a – Sine and cosine of an angle θ defined using the unit

circle

Indication of the sign and amount of key angles according to

rotation direction

Trigonometric ratios can also be represented using

the unit circle, which is the circle of radius 1
centered at the origin in the plane.[35] In this setting,
the terminal side of an angle A placed in standard
position will intersect the unit circle in a point (x,y),

where and .[35] This representation allows

for the calculation of commonly found trigonometric
values, such as those in the following table:[36]