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2005 AMC 12B Problem 16

Problem 16 of 25IntermediateGeometry

Eight spheres of radius 1,1, one per octant, are each tangent to the coordinate planes. What is the radius of the smallest sphere, centered at the origin, that contains these eight spheres?

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Solution

A sphere of radius 11 tangent to the three coordinate planes in one octant has its center at a point like (1,1,1),(1, 1, 1), at distance 12+12+12=3 \sqrt{1^2 + 1^2 + 1^2} = \sqrt3 from the origin. The farthest point of that sphere from the origin is at distance 3+1,\sqrt3 + 1, so the containing sphere has radius 1+3.1 + \sqrt3. Thus, the correct answer is D.

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Concepts: 3D geometry · sphere · distance formula

Problem text and solution from the LIVE past-contest archive. See also the AoPS wiki page for community solutions.