A parabola can be drawn given a focus of (-5,-7) and a directrix of y=-1. What can be said about the parabola

Question

The parabola has a vertex at ( , ) has a p-value of ___ and it opens up, opens down, opens left , opens right ?

Answer 1

The axis of symmetry is perpendicular to the directrix and contains the focus and vertex. So, the axis of symmetry is the vertical line x = -5. The vertex lies halfway between the focus and directrix. So, the vertex is (-5, -4). Since the vertex lies above the focus and the directrix is horizontal, the parabola opens downward. The focus is 3 units below the vertex, so, p = -3.