Question

A submarine is descending to examine the seafloor 2,100 feet below the surface. The submarine's descent can be represented by the equation y = -240x, where y is the elevation and x is time in hours. How long will it take this submarine to make the descent?

A. 8.75 hours
B. 9 hours
C. 10 hours
D. 11.25 hours

Answer 1

To determine the time it takes for a submarine to descend 2,100 feet using the equation y = -240x, we set y to -2,100 and solve for x, resulting in 8.75 hours.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find out how long the submarine will take to descend to the seafloor 2,100 feet below the surface using the equation y = -240x, where y is the elevation in feet and x is the time in hours, we need to set the equation equal to -2,100 feet (the depth of the seafloor) and solve for x.

Using the equation:
-2,100 = -240x

We simplify by dividing both sides by -240:

x = 2,100 / 240

This gives us:

x = 8.75 hours

Therefore, it will take the submarine 8.75 hours to make the descent.