Answer: greater than 1.
- A greater than 1
- B less than 1
- C equal to 1
- D equal to 0
Correct answer: A. greater than 1
Explanation: A hyperbola always has eccentricity greater than 1.
All four conics form a single family distinguished only by eccentricity: a circle is the most "closed" (e=0), an ellipse is an elongated closed curve, a parabola is the borderline open curve (e=1), and a hyperbola has two separate open branches (e>1).
Concept context
Study circles, parabolas, ellipses, and hyperbolas as curves formed by intersecting a plane with a double cone, with their standard equations and key properties.