UPSC Prelims 2003·GS1·geography·general geography

‘A’ and ‘B’ are two fixed points in a field. A cyclist C moves such that ACB is always a right angle. In this context, which one of the following statements is correct?

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Last updated 23 May 2026, 3:31 pm IST
  1. AThe path followed by the cyclist is an ellipse
  2. BThe path followed by the cyclist is a circleCorrect
  3. CThe path followed by the cyclist is an exponential curve
  4. DThis type of motion is not possible

Explanation

The correct answer is B because of a fundamental property of circles in geometry. According to the Thales theorem or the property of an angle in a semicircle, the angle subtended by a diameter at any point on the circumference is always a right angle. In this scenario, A and B are fixed points. If the cyclist C moves such that the angle ACB is always 90 degrees, C must be moving along the boundary of a circle where the line segment AB serves as the diameter. The fixed points A and B act as the endpoints of this diameter, and the path traced by C satisfies the geometric definition of a circle. Therefore, the path followed by the cyclist is a circle.
geography: ‘A’ and ‘B’ are two fixed points in a field. A cyclist C moves such that ACB is always a right angle. In this context, w
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