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5 Lines and Planes in Space

We show how to use scalar and vector products to write equations for line. line segments, and planes in space.

Lines and Line Segments in Space

In space a line is determined by a point and a vector giving the direction of the line. Suppose that L is a line in space passing through a point Po(xo,yo, zo) parallel to a vector v = v1i + v2 j + v3 k. Then L is the set of all points P(x, y, z) for which

P0 P is parallel to v. Thus, P0 P = tv
for some scalar parameter t. The value of t depends on the location of the point P along the line, and the domain of t is (- , ). The expanded form of the equation

P0 P = tv is
(x - xo)i + (y -yo)j + (z - zo)k = t(v1i + v2j + v3 k), which can be rewritten as (1) xi + yj + zk = xoi + yo j + zok + t(v1 i + v2 j + v3 k). If r(t) is the position vector of a point P(x, y, z) on the line and ro is the position vector of the point Po(xo, yo, zo), then Equation (1) gives the following vector form for the equation of a line in space.

Equating the corresponding components of the two sides of Equation (1) gives three scalar equations involving the parameter t: y = y0 + tv2, z = z0 + tv3. x = x0 + tv1, These equations give us the standard parametrization of the line for the parameter interval - < t < . If none of v1,v2, or v3 are zero, we can solve for the parameter in each of the three equations, to obtain

x x0 y y0 z z0 = = v1 v2 v3

This equation is called the symmetric equation of the line.

EXAMPLE
Find parametric equations for the line through (-2, 0, 4) parallel to v = 2i + 4j - 2k.

EXAMPLE
Find parametric equations for the line through P(-3, 2, -3) and Q(l, -1, 4).

Notice that: Parametrizations are not unique.

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To parametrize a line segment joining two points 1. parametrize the line through the points. 2. find the t-values for the endpoints and restrict t to lie in the closed interval bounded by these values. The line equations together with this added restriction parametrize the segment.

EXAMPLE
Parametrize the line segment joining the points P(-3, 2, -3) and Q(1, -1, 4)

Definition Let l1 and l2 be two lines in space, with parallel vectors a and b respectively, and let be the angle between a and b. (i) The lines l1 and l2 are parallel whenever a and b are parallel. (ii) If l1 and l2 intersect, then (a) the angle between l1 and l2 is and (b) the lines l1 and l2 are orthogonal whenever a and b are orthogonal.
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Definition Nonparallel , nonintersecting lines are called skew lines.

Example Show that the lines l1 : x 1 = t, y 2 = - t, and z 1 = 3t l2 : x 2 = - s, y 1 = 2s, and z 5 = -2s are not parallel, yet do not intersect.

The Distance from a Point to a Line in Space

To find the distance from a point S to a line that passes through a point P parallel to a vector v, we find the absolute value of the scalar component of PS in the direction of a vector normal to the line (Figure 12.38). In the notation of the figure, the absolute value of the scalar component is,

PS sin , which is
.

PS v v
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EXAMPLE
Find the distance from the point S(1, 1, 5) to the line L: x =1+ t, y = 3 - t, z = 2t.

An Equation for a Plane in Space

A plane in space is determined by knowing a point on the plane and a vector that is perpendicular or normal to the plane. Suppose that plane M passes through a point Po(xo, yo, zo) and is normal to the nonzero vector n = Ai + Bj + Ck. Then M is the set of all points P(x, y, z) for which P0 P is orthogonal to n (Figure 12.39). Thus, the dot product n P0 P = 0. This equation is equivalent to (Ai + Bj + Ck)[ (x - xo)i + (y - yo)j + (z - zo)k] = 0 or A(x - xo) + B(y - yo) + C(z - zo) = 0.
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EXAMPLE
Find an equation for the plane through P0(-3, 0, 7) perpendicular to n = 5i + 2j - k.

EXAMPLE
Find an equation for the plane through A(0, 0, 1), B(2, 0, 0), and C(0, 3, 0).

Lines of Intersection
Just as lines are parallel if and only if they have the same direction, two planes are parallel if and only if their normals are parallel, or nl = kn2 for some scalar k. Two planes that are not parallel intersect in a line.

EXAMPLE
Find a vector parallel to the line of intersection of the planes 3x - 6y - 2z = 15 and 2x + y - 2z = 5.

EXAMPLE
Find parametric equations for the line in which the planes 3x - 6y - 2z = 15 and 2x + y - 2z = 5 intersect.

EXAMPLE
Find the point where the line x = 3 + 2t, y = -2t, intersects the plane 3x + 2y + 6z = 6. z = 1+ t

The Distance from a Point to a Plane

If P is a point on a plane with normal n, then the distance from any point S to the plane is the length of the vector projection of

PS onto n. That is, the distance from S to the plane is

d = PS n n

where n = Ai + Bj + Ck is normal to the plane.

EXAMPLE 11 Find the distance from S(1, 1, 3) to the plane 3x + 2y + 6z = 6.

Angles Between Planes

The angle between two intersecting planes is defined to be the (acute) angle determined by their normal vectors (Figure 12.42).

EXAMPLE
Find the angle between the planes 3x - 6y - 2z = 15 and 2x + y - 2z = 5.

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