Q.Two parallel chords of a circle with a radius of 5 cm have lengths of 6 cm and 8 cm. What is the distance between the two chords?

Let AB = 8 cm and PQ = 6 cm be two parallel chords of a circle centered at point O. OA = OP = radius of the circle = 5 cm MN = distance between the two chords From the right-angled triangle \(\triangle MOA\), we get: \(OM^2 = OA^2 - AM^2 = 5^2 - \left(\frac{8}{2}\right)^2 = 25 - 16 = 9\) \(\therefore OM = \sqrt{9} = 3\) cm Again, from the right-angled triangle \(\triangle OPN\), we get: \(ON^2 = OP^2 - PN^2 = 5^2 - \left(\frac{6}{2}\right)^2 = 25 - 9 = 16\) \(\therefore ON = \sqrt{16} = 4\) cm \(\therefore MN = ON + OM = 3 + 4 = 7\) \(\therefore\) The distance between the two chords is 7 cm.
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