You have to add 9 to both sides to make two perfect square binomials, then put it into the correct format of the circle equation
(x^2-24x+144)+(y^2+10y+25)=9
(x-12)^2+(y+5)^2=9
(x-12)^2+(y+5)^2=3^2
Thus, the center of the circle is (12,-5)
Using the pythagorean theorem, you get 12^2+5^2=169
The square root of 169 is 13, thus your answer is 13