Question

A 20 ft ladder is placed next to a building. The ladder forms a 72° angle with the ground. How far is base of the ladder from the base of the building? Round your answer to the nearest tenth of a foot. Show your work

Answer 1

The ladder inclined to the wall of the building and its length is 20ft. The ladder forms a 72° angle with the ground.

We are asked to solve for the distance of the base of the ladder to the building. Thus, we can use SOH CAH TOA and we have the solution below:
cos 72°=adjacent/20ft
adjacent=20*cos72°
adjacent=6.18 feet

The distance is 6.18 feet.