Question

Rowan is walking in a shallow, clear bay, in still water just over her knees. When she looks down at her feet in the sand, she notes that they appear closer to her than usual. Normally, when she tips her head forward to look at her feet, her feet are 1.60 m from her eyes. How far away do her feet appear when they are under 0.60 m of water?

Answer 1

Rowan's feet appears at a distance of 0.451 m under water

Solution:

As per the question:

Actual depth in water, d = 0.60 m

Normal distance of her feet from her eyes, D = 1.60 m

Now,

We know that refractive index of water,
`n_(w) = 1.33`

Thus

To calculate the apparent height of her feet:

`n_(w) = (d)/(Apparent\ Height, H_(apparent))`

`H_(apparent) = (d)/(n_(w)) = (0.60)/(1.33) = 0.451\ m`