In geometry, the perpendicular distance from a point, P, to a line, L, is the distance from P to L, measured along a line which is perpendicular to L and passes through P.
In three dimensions, a perpendicular distance may also be the distance from a point to a plane, measured along the line that passes through the point and is perpendicular to the plane. Also, it can be the distance between two non-coplanar lines, measured along the line that has perpendicular intersections with them both.
Read more about Perpendicular Distance: Formulae (two Dimensions), Proof (Two Dimensions), Proof (Higher Dimensions), See Also
Famous quotes containing the word distance:
“1946: I go to graduate school at Tulane in order to get distance from a “possessive” mother. I see a lot of a red-haired girl named Maude-Ellen. My mother asks one day: “Does Maude-Ellen have warts? Every girl I’ve known named Maude-Ellen has had warts.” Right: Maude-Ellen had warts.”
—Bill Bouke (20th century)