Final answer:
The length of the hypotenuse in the given right triangle is 13.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Pythagorean theorem relates the length of the legs of a right triangle, labeled a and b, with the hypotenuse, labeled c. The relationship is given by: a² + b² = c². To find the length of the hypotenuse, substitute the given values a = 12 and b = 5 into the equation: c² = 12² + 5² = 144 + 25 = 169. Taking the square root of both sides, we find c = √169 = 13.