How do square roots help us solve equations?

In this section we will solve equations that have the variable in the radicand of a square root. Equations of this type are called radical equations.Radical EquationAn equation in which the variable is in the radicand of a square root is called a radical equation.As usual, in solving these equations, what we do to one side of an equation we must do to the other side as well. Since squaring a quantity and taking a square root are ‘opposite’ operations, we will square both sides in order to remove the radical sign and solve for the variable inside.But remember that when we write \sqrt{a} we mean the principal square root. So 0 always. When we solve radical equations by squaring both sides we may get an algebraic solution that would make negative. This algebraic solution would not be a solution to the original radical equation; it is an extraneous solution. We saw extraneous solutions when we solved rational equations, too.

Step-by-step explanation:

step-by-step explanation: