Scale Factor and Surface Area

E. Scale Factor and Surface Area

Surface area is the sum of the areas of the faces of a three-dimensional object. In the case of a cube, there are six faces, each with the same area. The width, length, and height of a cube are the same, so the edges can be represented by a single variable, s.

The surface area of an enlarged or reduced object can be determined when the dimensions of the original object are known.

Surface area is really several areas added together.

As such, calculating the surface area of enlarged or reduced objects using a scale factor is no different from determining the area of enlarged or reduced shapes using a scale factor (as was seen in the previous section).