In mathematics, the eccentricity, denoted e or , is a parameter associated with

every conic section. It can be thought of as a measure of how much the conic section
deviates from being circular.
In particular,

The eccentricity of a circle is zero.

The eccentricity of an ellipse which is not a circle is greater than zero but less than
1.

The eccentricity of a parabola is 1.

The eccentricity of a hyperbola is greater than 1.

Furthermore, two conic sections are similar if and only if they have the same eccentricity.
Conic Sections
Conic Section: a section (or slice) through a cone.
Did you know that by taking different slices through a cone you can create a circle, an
ellipse, a parabola or a hyperbola?

Cones

Circle
straight through

Ellipse
slight angle

Parabola
parallel to edge
of cone

Hyperbola
steep angle
So all those curves are related!

Focus!

The curves can also be defined using a straight line and a point (called
the directrix and focus).
When we measure the distance:

from the focus to a point on the curve, and

perpendicularly from the directrix to that point

the two distances will always be the same ratio.

For an ellipse, the ratio is less than 1

For a parabola, the ratio is 1, so the two distances are equal.

For a hyperbola, the ratio is greater than 1

Eccentricity
That ratio above is called the " eccentricity ", so we can say that any conic section is:
"all points whose distance to the focus is equal
to the eccentricity times the distance to the directrix"

For:

0 < eccentricity < 1 we get an ellipse,

eccentricity = 1 a parabola, and

eccentricity > 1 a hyperbola.

A circle has an eccentricity of zero, so the eccentricity shows us how "un-circular" the
curve is. The bigger the eccentricity, the less curved it is.

Latus Rectum

The latus rectum (no, it is not a rude word!) runs parallel to the directrix and passes
through the focus. Its length:

In a parabola, is four times the focal length

In a circle, is the diameter

In an ellipse, is 2b2/a (where a and b are one half of the major and minor diameter).

Here is the major axis and minor axis of an ellipse.

There is not just one focus and directrix, but a pair of them (one each side).

General Equation
In fact, we can make an equation that covers all these curves.

Because they are plane curves (even though cut out of the solid) we only have to deal
with Cartesian ("x" and "y") Coordinates .
But these are not straight lines, so just "x" and "y" will not do ... we need to go to the
next level, and have:

x2 and y2,

and also x (without y), y (without x),

x and y together (xy)

and a constant term.

There, that should do it!

And each one needs a factor (A,B,C etc) ...
So the general equation that covers all conic sections is:

And from that equation we can create equations for the circle, ellipse, parabola and
hyperbola ... but that is beyond the scope of this page.
Eccentricity of Conics
To each conic section (ellipse, parabola, hyperbola) there is a number called
the eccentricity that uniquely characterizes the shape of the curve. A circle has
eccentricity 0, an ellipse between 0 and 1, a parabola 1, and hyperbolae have
eccentricity greater than 1.
Although you might think that y=2x2 and y=x2 have different "shapes" because the
former is skinnier, they really have the same "shape" (and thus same eccentricity)
because the first curve is just the second curve viewed twice as far away (i.e., x and
y are both increased by a factor of 2).
One way to define a conic section is to specify a line in the plane, called
the directrix, and a point in the plane off of the line, called the focus. The conic

section is then the set of all points whose distance to the focus is a constant times
the distance to the directrix. This constant is the eccentricity.
It is easy to see that as the eccentricity of an ellipse grows, the ellipse becomes
skinnier. The formula for the ellipse also shows that every ellipse can be obtained by
taking a circle in a plane, lifting it up and out, tilting it, and projecting it back into
the plane.
Surprise: the eccentricity is equal to the sine of the angle of this tilt!
Presentation Suggestions:
If students are puzzled why the circle has eccentricity zero, you might explain that
its directrix is the line "at infinity" in the projective plane.
The Math Behind the Fact:
Conic sections take their name from the fact that one can also obtain them by
slicing a cone by a plane at various angles. Yet another way to obtain a conic
section is by starting with a circle and performing a geometric transformation called
reciprocation. The focus, directrix and eccentricity fall out as obvious parameters of
this reciprocation operation. This approach to conic sections comes from the field
of projective geometry.