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Area of Equilateral Triangle

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Area of an equilateral triangle is the space occupied by an equilateral triangle. An Equilateral triangle is a fundamental geometric shape that has excited mathematicians and scholars for centuries. It is a three-sided regular polygon i.e., all three sides are equal in length, and all the interior angles are also equal in measure i.e., 60°. In a lot of real-life application area of an equilateral triangle is used to solve problems such as the calculation of the surface area of a regular polyhedron, the amount of material required for the construction of architectural structures, etc. Understanding the area of an equilateral triangle is essential in many fields, including architecture, engineering, and science.

What is the Area of the Equilateral Triangle?

Area of an Equilateral Triangle is the region that is enclosed by the boundary of the triangle. Area of an equilateral triangle is measured in square units. Area of an equilateral depends upon the length of a side of an equilateral triangle. Let’s learn the formula used to define the area of an equilateral triangle.

examples of equilateral triangles

 

Area of Equilateral Triangle Formula

Area of an equilateral triangle is the space occupied between the sides of the equilateral triangle in a plane. For an equilateral triangle, 

Formula for finding the area of a triangle whose base and height are given is

Area of Triangle

 

If only sides, of the triangle, are given. Let an equilateral triangle of side ‘a’ be given then its area is

Area of Equilateral Triangle

 

Equilateral Triangle’s Area Derivation

Let’s calculate the area for a given equilateral triangle of side a. It is known that the area of a triangle is given as 1/2 × Base × Height.

Equilateral Triangle's Area Derivation

 

Here the base is a. Let’s find the height of this triangle in order to find the area. It can clearly be seen that the height can be found using the Pythagoras theorem since it is one of the sides of the right-angled triangle.

Applying Pythagoras’ theorem,

h2 + (a/2)2 = a2

⇒ h2 = (3a2/4)

⇒ h = √3a/2

Now the height of this equilateral triangle is known. Now, substitute this value of height into our formula, 

Area = 1/2 × Base × Height 

⇒ Area = 1/2 × a × √3a/2  =√3a2/4 

Area = √3a2/4

Derivation of Area of Equilateral Triangle using Trigonometry

Suppose the sides of a triangle are given, then the height can be calculated using the sine formula. Let the sides of a triangle ABC be a, b, and the angle corresponding to them be A, B, and C. Now, the height of a triangle is

h = a × Sin B = b × Sin C = c × Sin A 

Now, area of ABC = ½ × a × (b × sin C) 

⇒ area of ABC = ½ × b × (c × sin A)

⇒ area of ABC = ½ × c (a × sin B)

Since it is an equilateral triangle, A = B = C = 60° and a = b = c

⇒ Area = ½ × a × (a × Sin 60°) 

⇒ Area = ½ × a2 × Sin 60°

⇒ Area = ½ × a2 × √3/2 = √3a2/4 

Area of Equilateral Triangle = (√3/4)a2

Perimeter of the Equilateral Triangle

An equilateral triangle is a triangle with all three sides and the perimeter of any figure is the sum of all its sides. So, the perimeter of an equilateral triangle of side of length “a” is given by 

Perimeter of the Equilateral Triangle

 

Properties of an Equilateral Triangle

An equilateral triangle is one triangle in which all three sides are equal. For an equilateral triangle PQR, PQ = QR = RP. A few important properties of an equilateral triangle are:

  • All three sides are equal in an Equilateral Triangle.
  • In an equilateral triangle, all three internal angles are equal to each other and their value is 60°.
  • For an equilateral triangle, the median, angle bisector, and perpendicular all are the same.
  • Ortho-centre and centroid of an equilateral triangle are the same points.
  • In an equilateral triangle, there are three lines of symmetry and also 3rd order rotational symmetry as well.
  • Area of an equilateral triangle is √3 a2/ 4.
  • Perimeter of an equilateral triangle is 3a.

Related Resources

Solved Examples on Area of Equilateral triangle

Example 1: Find the area of the triangle whose all sides measure 4 units.

Solution:

As given all sides are of equal length hence, we can say that it is an equilateral triangle.

So we can apply the formula to directly find the area of this triangle.

Area = √3a2/4 = √3 × 42/4 = 4√3 units2

Example 2: Find the perimeter of the triangle whose sides are given as 3 cm, 4 cm, and 5 cm.

Solution: 

Sum of all the sides of any triangle is the perimeter of triangle

Hence, the perimeter of this given triangle is (3 + 4 + 5) cm

i.e. Perimeter is 12 cm

Example 3: Find the height of the equilateral triangle whose side is 4 cm.

Solution:

The formula for the height is given by: h = √3a/2 

h = (√3 × 4)/2 = 2√3 cm

Hence the height of the triangle is 2√3 cm

Example 4: Find the perimeter and area of the equilateral triangle whose side is given as 4 cm.

Solution: 

Side (s) = 4 cm

For any equilateral triangle the perimeter is calculated as 3 × s

Primeter(P) = 3 × 4 = 12 cm

Area = √3a2/4 
        = √3(4)2/4
        = √3(16) / 4 cm2
Area = 4√3 cm2

Example 5: Find the area of an equilateral triangle when the perimeter is 18 cm.

Solution:

Perimeter of an equilateral triangle = 18 cm

Perimeter of the equilateral triangle = 3a

3a = 18, a = 6

The length of side is 6 cm.

Area, A = √3 a2/ 4 sq units

            = √3 (6)2/ 4 cm2

            = 12√3 cm2

Then area of the equilateral triangle is 12√3 cm2

FAQs on the Area of Equilateral Triangle

Q1: What is an Equilateral Triangle?

Answer:

An equilateral triangle is a special type of triangle whose all the sides are equal and all its internal angles are 60° i.e. all its angle are equal.

Q2: What does the Area of an Equilateral Triangle mean?

Answer:

Area of an equilateral triangle is the total space occupied by an equilateral triangle in the 2-D plane. It is measured in units2

Q3: What is the Formula for the Area of an Equilateral Triangle?

Answer:

The formula required for finding the area of an equilateral triangle is,

A = ¼(√3a2)

where,
a is the side of equilateral triangle

Q4: What is the Formula for the Perimeter of an Equilateral Triangle?

Answer:

Formula to calculate the perimeter of an equilateral triangle is given by, let the side of equilateral triangle is a units then,

Perimeter(P) = 3 × a units



Last Updated : 18 Feb, 2024
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