Xochitl spots an airplane on radar that is currently approaching in a straight line, and that will fly directly overhead. The plane maintains a constant altitude of 7425 feet. Xochitl initially measures an angle of elevation of 19∘ to the plane at point A. At some later time, she measures an angle of elevation of 37∘ to the plane at point B. Find the distance the plane traveled from point A to point B. Round your answer to the nearest foot if necessary.
Q. Xochitl spots an airplane on radar that is currently approaching in a straight line, and that will fly directly overhead. The plane maintains a constant altitude of 7425 feet. Xochitl initially measures an angle of elevation of 19∘ to the plane at point A. At some later time, she measures an angle of elevation of 37∘ to the plane at point B. Find the distance the plane traveled from point A to point B. Round your answer to the nearest foot if necessary.
Identify Problem and Values: Step 1: Identify the problem and known values.We know the altitude of the plane is 7425 feet, and the angles of elevation from points A and B are 19 degrees and 37 degrees, respectively.
Use Tangent Function: Step 2: Use the tangent function to find the distances from Xochitl to the plane at points A and B.For point A: tan(19°)=distanceA7425distanceA=tan(19°)7425distanceA≈0.3447425=21599 feet (approximately)For point B: tan(37°)=distanceB7425distanceB=tan(37°)7425distanceB≈0.7537425=9867 feet (approximately)
Calculate Distance Traveled: Step 3: Calculate the distance the plane traveled from point A to point B.Distance traveled = distanceA−distanceBDistance traveled = 21599 feet - 9867 feetDistance traveled = 11732 feet
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