Question

A person standing at the top of mountain aconcagua would be approximately 4.3 mi high. the radius of earth is 3959 mi. what is the distance to the horizon from this point?

Answer 1

Besides ambitious, it would be 184.6 mi

Answer 2

Explanation :

It is given that,

The radius of the earth is, r = 3959 mi

From the attached figure, we have to find the distance to the horizon from this point.

So, using Pythagoras theorem:

`AP^2=OA^2-OP^2`

`x^2=(R+h)^2-R^2`

`x^2=(3959+4.3)^2-(3959)^2`

`x^2=34065.89\ mi`

`x=184.57\ mi`

The distance to the horizon from this point is 184.57 mi.

Hence, this is the required solution.