Curve with two separate branches, one of the conic section s.
In Euclidean geometry , the intersection of a double right circular cone and a plane at an angle that is less than the cone's generating angle (the angle its sides make with its central axis) forms the hyperbola's two branches (one on each nappe, or single cone). In analytic geometry , the standard equation of a hyperbola is x 2 / a 2 /n-/n y 2 / b 2 /n=/n1. Hyperbolas have many important physical attributes that make them useful in the design of lens es and antenna s.