181k views
0 votes
A pirate treasure map has someone travelling 18 paces at 45 degrees, 32 paces at 110 degrees, and 28 paces at 200 degrees. How many paces and at what direction from the starting point would have also resulted in finding the treasure?

User TrewTzu
by
7.9k points

1 Answer

5 votes

Final answer:

To determine the total displacement from the starting point and the direction to reach the treasure, we break down the distances and directions into x and y components. We then calculate the sum of the x and y components to find the total displacement and use trigonometry to determine the direction. The total displacement is approximately 42.826 paces and the direction is 116.13 degrees.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the answer, we will break down the given distances and directions into x and y components. Let's start with the first leg of 18 paces at 45 degrees. The x component is 18 * cos(45) = 12.728 paces (westward) and the y component is 18 * sin(45) = 12.728 paces (northward). Next, for the second leg of 32 paces at 110 degrees, the x component is 32 * cos(110) = -10.386 paces (eastward) and the y component is 32 * sin(110) = 27.469 paces (northward). Lastly, for the third leg of 28 paces at 200 degrees, the x component is 28 * cos(200) = -21.180 paces (eastward) and the y component is 28 * sin(200) = -1.483 paces (southward).

To find the total displacement, we sum up the x and y components. The total x component is 12.728 - 10.386 - 21.180 = -18.838 paces and the total y component is 12.728 + 27.469 - 1.483 = 38.714 paces. Using the Pythagorean theorem, the distance from the starting point is sqrt((-18.838)^2 + 38.714^2) = 42.826 paces. To find the direction, we can use trigonometry. The angle can be determined using the inverse tangent function atan2(38.714, -18.838) = 116.13 degrees.

User Streight
by
7.9k points