Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
A regular octagon inscribed in a circle can be divided into 8 congruent isosceles triangles, with their common vertex at the center of the circle. The area of the octagon is the sum of the areas of these triangles.
Step 2: Key Formula or Approach:
1. The angle at the center of the circle subtended by each side of the octagon is \( \frac{360^\circ}{8} = 45^\circ \).
2. The area of a triangle can be calculated using the formula \( \text{Area} = \frac{1}{2}ab\sin(C) \), where a and b are two sides and C is the included angle.
3. Total Area = 8 \( \times \) Area of one triangle.
Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Let the circle have its center at the origin O and radius r = 1.
The regular octagon can be divided into 8 identical isosceles triangles, such as \( \triangle OAB \), where A and B are adjacent vertices of the octagon.
The sides OA and OB are radii of the circle, so \( OA = OB = r = 1 \).
The angle between these two sides, \( \angle AOB \), is one-eighth of the total angle around the center:
\[ \angle AOB = \frac{360^\circ}{8} = 45^\circ \]
Now, we can find the area of one of these triangles using the formula \( \text{Area} = \frac{1}{2}ab\sin(C) \):
\[ \text{Area of } \triangle OAB = \frac{1}{2} \times OA \times OB \times \sin(\angle AOB) \]
\[ \text{Area of } \triangle OAB = \frac{1}{2} \times 1 \times 1 \times \sin(45^\circ) \]
We know that \( \sin(45^\circ) = \frac{1}{\sqrt{2}} = \frac{\sqrt{2}}{2} \).
\[ \text{Area of } \triangle OAB = \frac{1}{2} \times \frac{\sqrt{2}}{2} = \frac{\sqrt{2}}{4} \]
The total area of the octagon is 8 times the area of one triangle.
\[ \text{Area of Octagon} = 8 \times (\text{Area of } \triangle OAB) = 8 \times \frac{\sqrt{2}}{4} \]
\[ \text{Area of Octagon} = 2\sqrt{2} \]
Step 4: Final Answer:
The area of the regular octagon is \( 2\sqrt{2} \) square units.