Circle Chord Length Calculator

Calculate the length of a chord in a circle given the radius and the distance from the center to the chord.

Input Values

Enter the radius of the circle and the distance from the center of the circle to the chord to calculate the chord length.

units
units

Result

Chord Length (L):

Visualization

Visual representation of the circle, radius, distance from center, and the calculated chord.

Distance (d)Radius (r)CenterChord EndChord EndChord (L)

Understanding Circle Chords

In geometry, a chord of a circle is a line segment whose endpoints both lie on the circle. The straight line distance from the center of the circle to the chord is called the distance from the center to the chord.

The formula to calculate the length of a chord (L) given the radius (r) of the circle and the distance (d) from the center to the chord is derived from the Pythagorean theorem:

$$ L = 2 \sqrt{r^2 - d^2} $$

This calculator simplifies the process of finding the chord length by just requiring the radius and the distance from the center as inputs. It's useful in various applications, from geometry problems to practical constructions involving circular shapes.

Learn more about circle chords on Wikipedia.