10.1 Parabolas

The basic equations for a parabola are (x-h)^2 = 4p(y-k) and (y-k)^2 = 4p(x-h). As you can see, these two equations are very similar, but the variables are just rearranged. The first equation is used to represent parabolas that go up-and-down, while the latter represents parabolas that go side-to-side. The p is equal to the distance between the vertex of the parabola and it's focus or it's directrix. (The focus is a point in the same direction of the parabola, and the directrix is a line that the parabola goes away from). Finally, (h,k) is the vertex pf the parabola.