Right triangle and "b" are the legs of the triangle. If the incircle is tangent to the hypotenuse AB at point P, then denoting the semi-perimeter as "s", we have and , and the area is given by This formula only applies to right triangles. If an altitude is drawn from the vertex with the right angle to the hypotenuse then the triangle is divided into two smaller triangles which are both similar to the original and therefore similar to each other. From this: In equations, where "a", "b", "c", "d", "e", "f" are as shown in the diagram. Thus Moreover, the
Altitude (triangle) "dropping the altitude" at that vertex. It is a special case of orthogonal projection. Altitudes can be used in the computation of the area of a triangle: one half of the product of an altitude's length and its base's length equals the triangle's area. Thus, the longest altitude is perpendicular to the shortest side of the triangle. The altitudes are also related to the sides of the triangle through the trigonometric functions. In an isosceles triangle (a triangle with two congruent sides), the altitude having the incongruent side as its base will have the midpoint of that side as its