Question

A kite string is 50 feet long, and you are able to measure the angle of elevation to be 25 degrees. You are holding the kite from 5 feet above the ground.

Show all your work to find the total height (h) of the kite.

Answer 1

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Answer:

26.1 ft

Explanation:

The height of the kite above your position is the opposite side of a right triangle whose hypotenuse is 50 ft. The relevant trig relation is ...

Sin = Opposite/Hypotenuse

Filling in the known values, we have ...

sin(25°) = height/(50 ft)

height = (50 ft)sin(25°) ≈ 21.1 ft

Added to the height at which you are holding the string, this becomes the total height of the kite.

h = 5 ft + 21.1 ft = 26.1 ft . . . . total height of the kite