Home > Student Resources > Graph Polar Equations

Graph Polar Equations

Make a table of r-values corresponding to various values of θ for [0, 2π] (round to the nearest tenth).
Graph the ordered pairs (r, θ) and connect the points with a smooth curve.

Example: $r=1-cos\theta$

θ:	0	$\frac{\pi}{6}$	$\frac{\pi}{3}$	$\frac{\pi}{2}$	$\frac{2\pi}{3}$	$\frac{5\pi}{6}$	$\pi$	$\frac{7\pi}{6}$	$\frac{4\pi}{3}$	$\frac{3\pi}{2}$	$\frac{5\pi}{3}$	$\frac{11\pi}{6}$	$2\pi$
r=1-cosθ:	0	0.1	0.5	1	1.5	1.9	2	1.9	1.5	1	0.5	0.1	0

$r=1-cos(0)=1-1=0$

$r=1-cos(\frac{\pi}{6})=1-\frac{\sqrt{3}}{2}=0.1$