Before we proceed towards the

concept of a parabola, we shall frist

throw some light on conic sections as
parabola is a type of conic.
 Parabola is the chief and easiest topic in the Conic
Sections of Co-ordinate Geometry in Mathematics. The
name "parabola" is derived from a Latin term that means
something similar to "compare" or "balance", and refers to
the fact that the distance from the parabola to the focus
is always equal to (that is, is always in balance with) the
distance from the parabola to the directrix. Another point
to be noted is that the vertex is exactly midway between
the directrix and the focus. Mathematically, a parabola
may be defined as:
The locus of a point which moves in such a way that its
distance from a fixed point (i.e. focus) is always equal to its
perpendicular distance from a fixed straight line (i.e.
directrix), is called parabola.
The general equation of a parabola opening to the right
with vertex at (0, 0), is given by y2 = 4ax.
 Axis:
The straight line passing through the focus and
perpendicular to the directrix is called the axis of
the parabola.
Focus:
The focus of a parabola is a fixed point in the
interior of the parabola.
Focal distance:
The distance of a point on the parabola from its
focus is called the focal distance of the point.
Focal Chord:
A chord of the parabola, which passes through its
focus is called Focal chord.
Vertex: The vertex of a parabola is the point where
the parabola crosses its axis. When the coefficient
of the x2 term is positive, then the vertex is the
lowest point on the graph but in case it is negative
the vertex will be the highest point on the graph.
 Directrix:
A line perpendicular to the axis of symmetry is called the
directrix.
Latus Rectum:
The latus rectum of a conic section is the chord through a
focus parallel to the conic section directrix. The quantity 4a is
known as the latus rectum. Half the latus rectum is called the
semilatus rectum.
Double Ordinate:
Any chord of the parabola which is perpendicular to the axis
is called double ordinate.
Tangent:
The straight line perpendicular to the axis of
the parabola passing through vertex is called tangent at the
vertex.
Conormal Points:
The three points on the parabola, the normals at which pass
through a common point, are called the co-normal points.
Director Circle:
Locus of the point of intersection of the perpendicular
tangents to the parabola y2 = 4ax is called the director circle.
The equation of the director circle is gievn as x + a = 0 which
is the directrix of the parabola.
 Let S be the focus, V be the vertex, ZM be the directrix and x-axis be the axis
of parabola. We require therefore the locus of a point P, which moves so that its
distance from S, is always equal to PM i.e. its perpendicular distance from ZM. After
appropriate configuration let S = (a, 0)

Then we have SP2 = PM2

(x a)2 + y2 = (a + x)2
y2 = 4ax. This is the standard equation of a parabola.
Also if the vertex is at (x0, y0) instead of (0, 0), the equation of
the parabola becomes
(y-y0)2 = 4a (x-x0)
If the parabola instead opens upwards, its equation is
x2 = 4ay
 The standard equation of a parabola may also be written as
y = ax2 + bx + c.
But the equation for a parabola can also be written in "vertex
form":
y = a(x h)2 + k
In this equation, the vertex of the parabola is the point (h, k).
 Illustration:
State the vertex and focus of the parabola having
the equation (y 3)2 = 8(x 5).
Solution:
Comparing the given equation with the general
equation of parabola and noticing that h always
goes with the x and the k with y, we get the centre at
(h, k) = (5, 3).
Now the coefficient of the unsquared part is 4a, here
4a = 8. This gives a = 2.
Now notice that a is positive and the y part is
squared so this is a sideways parabola that opens to
the right. The focus is inside the parabola, so it has to
be two units to the right of the vertex. Hence, the
vertex is given by (5,3) and the focus is at (7,3).