Polar Coordinate

System
Objectives:

At the end of the session, the students are hoped and expected to be able to:
• Locate and plot points in polar coordinate system;
• Determine other polar coordinate representation of a given point in polar
coordinates; and
• Convert the coordinates of a point from rectangular to polar systems and
vice versa.
Polar Coordinates
P (r, θ)

r (radius vector)

θ

O Initial line or polar axis
x
Pole or
origin
Sign conventions:
(a) θis positive when measured counterclockwise, negative when measured
clockwise.
(b) r is positive if laid off on the terminal side of θ, negative if laid off on the
prolongation through O of the terminal side.
Properties of r and θ:
o Let P(r, θ), where r > 0, be on the
terminal side of θ.
o Extend the terminal side to the
opposite direction from O.
o Let P’ be a point on this ray where
the distance from O to P’ is r.
o Then, P’ has polar coordinates
P’(−r, θ), where r > 0.
Ways to write polar coordinate:
Example 1:
Plot the following points.
Transformation
y
of Coordinates
x = r cos θ

r
y
y = r sin θ

o
θ
x
x r2 = x2 + y2
y y
tan θ= x θ= arctan x
Example 2: Convert the
following polar coordinates
into cartesian coordinates.
Polar Coordinate Representation
Property 2:

Let (r, θ) be the polar coordinate representation of P(x, y), where 𝑟 = 𝑥 2 + 𝑦 2 . Then,

𝑦
a. 𝜃 = 𝑡𝑎𝑛−1 𝑥
if (x, y) is in Quadrant I or Quadrant IV; and
𝑦
b. 𝜃 = 𝜋 + 𝑡𝑎𝑛−1 𝑥 if (x, y) is in Quadrant II or Quadrant III.
Example 3: Convert the following
Cartesian into polar coordinates.
 5𝜋
Example 5: Plot the point 𝑃 10, − . Find three
4
sets of polar coordinates for P with the following
conditions.

a. 𝑟 > 0, 0 ≤ 𝜃 ≤ 2𝜋
b. 𝑟 < 0, 0 ≤ 𝜃 ≤ 2𝜋
c. 𝑟 < 0, −2𝜋 ≤ 𝜃 ≤ 0
Seatwork: