CONIC SECTION

Properties of Conic Sections:

1. Intersection at infinity

- Division of conic sections can also be done on the basis of the line at the
infinity and its intersection with the conic, which gives:

a. Ellipses if it intersects the line at infinity in 0 points – rather, in 0 real points,

but in 2 complex points, which are conjugate.

b. Parabolas if it intersects the line at infinity in 1 double point, relating to the

axis.

c. Hyperbolas if it intersects the line at infinity in two points, relating to the

asymptotes – hyperbolas pass through infinity, with a twist.

2. Degenerate cases

- There are five types of degenerate cases: The first three are in which the
plane passes along the apex of the cone, and rest two that arise when the
cone itself degenerates to a cylinder. 

3. Eccentricity and Focus

- For 0 < eccentricity (e) < 1 we get an ellipse, for e = 1 a parabola, and for
e > 1 a hyperbola. For an ellipse, the ratio of focus is less than 1, For a
parabola, the ratio is 1, so the two distances are equal and for a
hyperbola, the ratio is greater than 1.