Answer:
- Every five minutes, the shuttle loses 1.6km in altitude. This can be written in the equation y =
x + 100. - It would have been 100.56 km above the earth. You can do this by plugging in -2 into the equation above. You have to use -2 because it is 2 minutes before tracking started.
- It will take around 357 minutes for it to reach the ground. Set the equation equal to 0 and solve for x which represents the time taken.
Explanation:
1. change in y over change in x.
=
This becomes your slope.
the y-intercept is 100 because at x = 0, y= 100.
So plug these values into y = mx + b and you get y =
x + 100.
2. If the line starts at x = 0, then if you want to get a value for 2 minutes prior you have to use -2 because 0 - 2 = -2.
y =
(-2) + 100
Set it equal to zero and solve algebraically. The answer should be 100.56.
3. If we want to see how many minutes it takes to get to an altitude of 0, we have to make y = 0 and solve for x. This is because we know that y will be 0 but we don't know how long it takes.
0 =
x + 100
Solve algebraically and you should get an answer around 357.