Question

2. A skydiver jumps from a plane from an altitude of 7920 feet. The wind carries her to a spot 5280 feet away from the point she left the plane. What is the slope of her path of descent?

Answer 1

The slope of her path of descent is -1.5.

Explanation:

Given:

Vertical distance of the skydiver is,
`\textrm{fall}=-7920\ ft`

Negative sign indicates that there is decrease in the vertical distance of the skydiver.

Horizontal distance of the skydiver is,
`\textrm{Run}=5280\ ft`

Now, slope of her path of descent is defined as the ratio of fall to run.

`\textrm{Slope}=\frac{\textrm{Fall}}{\textrm{Run}}\\\textrm{Slope}=(-7920)/(5280)=-1.5`

Therefore, the slope of her path of descent is -1.5. The slope is negative as there is descent of the skydiver.