Question

A plane is in route to drop off much needed medical supplies to a town. At an altitude of 6.4 miles, it located the town airport at an angle of depression of 7.9 degrees. How many horizontal miles left does the plane need to travel? round to the nearest tenth of a mile.

Answer 1

The horizontal distance is 46.1 miles.

Explanation:

Here, the given question can be explained by the sides of a right angled triangle. Let x represent the horizontal miles, then applying an appropriate trigonometric function;

Tan θ =
`(opposite)/(adjacent)`

Tan
`7.9^(o)` =
`(6.4)/(x)`

0.1388 =
`(6.4)/(x)`

x =
`(6.4)/(0.1388)`

= 46.1095

x = 46.1 miles

The plane needs to travel a horizontal distance of 46.1 miles.