Question

From a horizontal distance of 80.0 m, the angle to the top of a flagpole is 18°. Calculate the height of the flagpole to the nearest tenth of a meter.

1. 24.7 meters
2. 76.1 meters
3. 26.0 meters
4. 25.3 meters ​

Answer 1

The figure is omitted--please sketch it to confirm my answer.

Set your calculator to degree mode.

Let h be the height of the flagpole.

`\tan(18) = (h)/(80)`

`h = 80 \tan(18) = 25.994`

The height of the flagpole is approximately 26.0 meters. #3 is correct.