In
hyperbolic geometry
In mathematics, hyperbolic geometry (also called Lobachevskian geometry or Bolyai–Lobachevskian geometry) is a non-Euclidean geometry. The parallel postulate of Euclidean geometry is replaced with:
:For any given line ''R'' and point ''P ...
, the "law of cosines" is a pair of theorems relating the sides and angles of triangles on a
hyperbolic plane
In mathematics, hyperbolic geometry (also called Lobachevskian geometry or Bolyai– Lobachevskian geometry) is a non-Euclidean geometry. The parallel postulate of Euclidean geometry is replaced with:
:For any given line ''R'' and point ''P' ...
, analogous to the planar
law of cosines
In trigonometry, the law of cosines (also known as the cosine formula, cosine rule, or al-Kashi's theorem) relates the lengths of the sides of a triangle to the cosine of one of its angles. Using notation as in Fig. 1, the law of cosines states ...
from plane
trigonometry
Trigonometry () is a branch of mathematics that studies relationships between side lengths and angles of triangles. The field emerged in the Hellenistic world during the 3rd century BC from applications of geometry to astronomical studies ...
, or the
spherical law of cosines In spherical trigonometry, the law of cosines (also called the cosine rule for sides) is a theorem relating the sides and angles of spherical triangles, analogous to the ordinary law of cosines from plane trigonometry.
Given a unit sphere, a "sph ...
in
spherical trigonometry
Spherical trigonometry is the branch of spherical geometry that deals with the metrical relationships between the sides and angles of spherical triangles, traditionally expressed using trigonometric functions. On the sphere, geodesics are grea ...
. It can also be related to the relativistic
velocity addition formula.
[Barrett, J.F. (2006), The hyperbolic theory of relativity ][Mathpages]
Velocity Compositions and Rapidity
/ref>
History
Describing relations of hyperbolic geometry, it was shown by Franz Taurinus (1826) that the spherical law of cosines In spherical trigonometry, the law of cosines (also called the cosine rule for sides) is a theorem relating the sides and angles of spherical triangles, analogous to the ordinary law of cosines from plane trigonometry.
Given a unit sphere, a "sph ...
can be related to spheres of imaginary radius, thus he arrived at the hyperbolic law of cosines in the form:
:
which was also shown by Nikolai Lobachevsky
Nikolai Ivanovich Lobachevsky ( rus, Никола́й Ива́нович Лобаче́вский, p=nʲikɐˈlaj ɪˈvanəvʲɪtɕ ləbɐˈtɕɛfskʲɪj, a=Ru-Nikolai_Ivanovich_Lobachevsky.ogg; – ) was a Russian mathematician and geometer, kn ...
(1830):
:
Ferdinand Minding (1840) gave it in relation to surfaces of constant negative curvature:
:
as did Delfino Codazzi (1857):
: