A pole that is 2.9m tall casts a shadow that is1.26m long. nearby building casts a shadow that is 47.25m long. How tall is the building?

Question

A pole that is 2.9m tall casts a shadow that is 1.26m long. At the same time, a nearby building casts a shadow that is 47.25m long. How tall is the building? Round your answer to the nearest meter.

Answer 1

The heights and shadows of the objects are legs of similar right triangles.  We can use these similar triangles to set up a proportion to solve for the height of the building.

 

2.9 / 1.26 = x / 47.25

 

x = 108.75 m