Final answer:
To calculate the length of the ramp with a 10° angle and a horizontal span of 75 feet, use the formula ramp length = 75 / cos(10°). The length of the ramp, when rounded to four decimal places, is approximately 75.67 feet.
Step-by-step explanation:
The builder of a parking garage wants to calculate the length of a ramp that makes a 10° angle with the ground and spans 75 feet horizontally. To find the actual ramp length, we can use trigonometry, specifically the cosine function. The cosine of an angle in a right triangle is equal to the adjacent side (the ground span) divided by the hypotenuse (the ramp length).
So, cos(10°) = adjacent/hypotenuse, which translates to cos(10°) = 75 / ramp length. We then solve for the ramp length by dividing the horizontal span by the cosine of the angle: ramp length = 75 / cos(10°). Using a calculator, we find that the ramp length is approximately 75.67 feet when rounded to four decimal places.
Here is the step-by-step calculation:
- Calculate the cosine of the angle: cos(10°).
- Divide the horizontal span by the cosine of the angle: 75 / cos(10°).
- Round the result to four decimal places.
Therefore, the actual length of the ramp will be approximately 75.67 feet.