Question

While on spring break, Kayla decided she wanted to go parasailing She was held at a constant angle above the water by a large tow rope attached to the back of the boat. The length of the tow rope is 240 meters. If the angle of the rope keeps Kayla at a horizontal distance of 181 meters away from the boat, how high above the boat is Kayla?

Answer 1

157.6m

Explanation:

Given

Horizontal distance = 181m

Length of the rope =240m

To know how high above Kayla was, we will use the Pythagoras theorem.

According to the theorem;

d² = x²+y²

x is the horizontal distance

y is the vertical distance

d is the length of the rope

Substitute

240² = 181²+y²

y² = 240²-181²

y² = 24839

y = √24839

y = 157.6m

Hence the boat is 157.6m above Kayla