A regular hexagon has rotational symmetry. Name the largest degree of rotation, excluding 360°

360
°
, that would turn a regular hexagon onto itself.

1 answer

A regular hexagon has rotational symmetry and can be rotated about its center. The rotations that map the hexagon onto itself are multiples of \( \frac{360^\circ}{n} \), where \( n \) is the number of sides (which is 6 for a hexagon).

Calculating this gives: \[ \frac{360^\circ}{6} = 60^\circ \]

The rotations that map the hexagon onto itself are therefore:

  • \( 0^\circ \) (no rotation)
  • \( 60^\circ \)
  • \( 120^\circ \)
  • \( 180^\circ \)
  • \( 240^\circ \)
  • \( 300^\circ \)

The largest degree of rotation, excluding \( 360^\circ \), that would turn a regular hexagon onto itself is:

\[ \boxed{300^\circ} \]