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Evaluating Inverse Trigonometric
Functions
Lesson 1
Evaluating Inverse Trig Functions
Most calculators that have the trigonometric functions can also be used to evaluate the
inverse trigonometric functions, directly.
For the sin , cos and tan functions on most devices, one presses the ' 2 nd function' or
'shift' key and then the appropriate trigonometric function button to access the inverse
function.
For example, if we need to find an angle whose sine is 0.25 , we press 'shift', 'sin', 0.25 ,
'execute' (or the equivalent commands depending on the particular calculator being
used) and the result, 14.477 512 19 in degrees should appear. For most practical
purposes, we would round this number to at most four decimal places, bearing in mind
1
that 1 second of arc is ° or approximately 0.000 3° .
3 600
In the past, before electronic calculating machines were available, tables of
trigonometric functions were used. A table of sines would show the sine of any angle
between 0 and 90° , expressed to four decimal places. To find the inverse sine of, say
0.25 , one would look for this number in the body of the table and, doing the lookup in
reverse, deduce that it is the sine of 14.477 5° .
To find the inverses of values of the secant, cosecant and cotangent functions, which are
usually not available on a calculator, we first write them as reciprocals of the cosine, sine
and tangent functions and then proceed as before.
For example, if csc θ = 25.001 8 and we require a value of θ , we could write
θ = csc−1(25.001 8) but this is not something most calculators can evaluate directly.
Instead, we would go through the following reasoning:
csc θ = 25.001 8
1
sin θ
= 25.001 8
1
sin θ = 25.001 8
= 0.399 971 202 1
θ = sin−1(0.399 971 202 1)
= 23.576 4°
We kept all the decimal digits in the calculation until the final step to avoid roundoff
errors. If the number 0.399 971 202 1 had been rounded to four decimal places, it
−1
would become 0.400 0 and then sin (0.4) = 23.578 2° which is different from the
more accurate answer by about 6.5 seconds of arc.
Because the functions tan , cot , csc and sec have vertical asymptotes, a small change
in the value of θ , the argument of the function, when θ is close to an asymptote, causes
a relatively large change in the function value. Conversely, near an asymptote function
values are large and a difference between them can result from very slightly different
angles.
For this reason, calculations involving tan , cot , csc and sec and their inverses near
asymptotes have to be treated with caution.
For example, tan 87° = 19.08 , tan 88° = 28.64 and tan 89° = 57.29 . We see that a
small angle difference leads to increasing differences in the function values as the angle
nears 90° . In the same way, if we were to evaluate arctan 40 and arctan 50 by
calculator, we would obtain the results 88.568 ° and 88.852 ° respectively, a difference
of only 0.286 ° .
A calculator returns single values of the inverse functions. But, when defined on their full
domains, the trigonometric functions are periodic and thus give the same function value
for many different values of the domain variable.
For example, given that cos β = −0.665 , find several solutions for the angle β . By
calculator, we find β = arccos ( − 0.665 ) = 131.682 ° . This is a 'second quadrant'
angle, related to 180 − 131.682 = 48.318 ° in the first quadrant. Since cosine is also
negative in the third quadrant, there must be another angle, 180 + 48.318 = 228.318 °
with the same cosine.
Further solutions are obtained by adding multiples of 360° to these. The following
representation should make this clear.
Example
Evaluate an inverse trigonometric function in order to find four solutions to the equation
sec θ = −4.35 .
1
We rewrite this as = −4.35 . Then, cos θ = 1 . Thus,
cos θ −4.35
1
θ = arccos −4.35 = 103.29° is a solution. This angle is related to the first quadrant
angle 13.29° and so, the third quadrant solution is 180 + 13.29 = 193.29° .
By subtracting 360° from each of these solutions we have
θ = 103.29°, 193.29°, − 256.71°, − 166.71° .
Worked Examples
QUESTION 1
Find the value of θ = sin−1 ( 0.944 898 09 ) in decimal degrees.
Give your answer to four decimal places.
QUESTION 2
Find the value of θ = csc−1 ( −1.527 567 7 ) in decimal degrees.
Give your answer to four decimal places.
QUESTION 3
Find the real number value of θ = sin−1 ( 0.462 053 86 ) .
Give your answer to three decimal places.
