What are Polar Coordinates? 🗺️
**Polar coordinates** are an alternative way to locate a point in a plane. Instead of using a horizontal and vertical distance from the origin (like in Cartesian coordinates), we use a **distance** from the origin and an **angle** from the positive x-axis.
A point is written as $(r, \theta)$, where:
- $r$ is the **radius** (distance from the origin or **pole**).
- $\theta$ is the **angle** (measured counter-clockwise from the positive x-axis or **polar axis**).
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Video: Visualizing Polar Coordinates 🎬
Watch this video to see how a point is defined in the polar coordinate system.
Practice Problems
Convert the given coordinates to the other system.
1) Polar to Cartesian: $(r, \theta) = (2, \frac{\pi}{2})$
2) Cartesian to Polar: $(x, y) = (4, 4)$
3) Polar to Cartesian: $(r, \theta) = (6, \pi)$
4) Cartesian to Polar: $(x, y) = (-3, 0)$
⚡ Coordinate Conversion Speed Quiz
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