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Determine whether a triangle can be formed with the given side lengths. If so, use Heron's formula to find the area of the triangle.

a = 240
b = 127
c = 281

User Jhunlio
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1 Answer

4 votes

Answer:

area of the triangle is about 15,183.766

Explanation:

The sum of the two shortest sides is 367, which is greater than the longest side, hence these side lengths can form a triangle.*

The perimeter is ...

p = 240 +127 +281 = 648

so the semi-perimeter is ...

s = p/2 = 648/2 = 324

Heron's formula tells you the area is ...

A = √(s(s -a)(s -b)(s -c)) = √(324·84·197·43) = √230,546,736

A ≈ 15,183.766

The area of the triangle is about 15,183.766 square units.

_____

* The terms s-a, s-b, and s-c are all positive, which is further evidence the side lengths will form a triangle. If one or more of those factors is negative, the side lengths will not form a triangle.

Determine whether a triangle can be formed with the given side lengths. If so, use-example-1
User Ifeanyi Echeruo
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7.9k points
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