In the figure shown below, each of the points labeled P through X is a point of tangency between 2 circles. Each vertex of △ABC is the center of a circle. Each circle has a radius of r cm. Which of the following expressions represents the area, in square centimeters, of △ABC ?
Approach
Each side of the triangle has a length of r+2r+r=4r.
Since the triangle is equilateral, it can be broken up into two 30−60−90 triangles. The ratio of the base of this triangle to the height is 1:3.
Given a base of 2r (after the equilateral triangle is split in two), the corresponding height will be 2r3. Then we obtain the area of the entire triangle: