Problem

Source: South African Mathematics Olympiad 2018, Problem 4

Tags: geometry, circumcircle, area



Let $ABC$ be a triangle with circumradius $R$, and let $\ell_A, \ell_B, \ell_C$ be the altitudes through $A, B, C$ respectively. The altitudes meet at $H$. Let $P$ be an arbitrary point in the same plane as $ABC$. The feet of the perpendicular lines through $P$ onto $\ell_A, \ell_B, \ell_C$ are $D, E, F$ respectively. Prove that the areas of $DEF$ and $ABC$ satisfy the following equation: $$ \operatorname{area}(DEF) = \frac{{PH}^2}{4R^2} \cdot \operatorname{area}(ABC). $$