What can be the maximum number of common tangent which can be drawn to two non-intersecting circles?
4
For two non-intersecting circles, either they lie completely outside each other (\(d>r_1+r_2\)) or one lies inside the other (\(d<|r_1-r_2|\)).
The external case admits 2 direct + 2 transverse common tangents; the internal case admits 0. Hence the maximum is 4.
Similar Questions
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Important Questions from Circles, Chords and Tangents
AB is a chord of a circle with centre O and P is any point on the circle. If ∠APB = 112°, then what is the measure of ∠OAB ?
The distance between the centres of two circles is 24 cm. If the radius of the two circles are 4 cm and 8 cm, then what is the sum of the lengths (in cm) of the direct common tangent and the transverse common tangent?
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AB is a chord in the minor segment of a circle with centre O. C is a point on the minor arc (between A and B). The tangents to the circle at A and B meet at a point P. If ∠ACB = 108°, then ∠APB is equal to:
