In geometry, Villarceau circles ( /viːlɑrˈsoʊ/) are a pair of circles produced by cutting a torus diagonally through the center at the correct angle. Given an arbitrary point on a torus, four circles can be drawn through it. One is in the plane (containing the point) parallel to the equatorial plane of the torus. Another is perpendicular to it. The other two are Villarceau circles. They are named after the French astronomer and mathematician Yvon Villarceau (1813–1883). Mannheim (1903) showed that a the Villarceau circles meet all of the parallel circular cross-sections of the torus at the same angle, a result that he said a Colonel Schoelcher had presented at a congress in 1891.
Read more about Villarceau Circles: Example, Existence and Equations, Filling Space
Famous quotes containing the word circles:
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—Katharine Whitehorn (b. 1926)