A pilot is flying over a straight highway. He determines the angles of depression to two mileposts, 5.9 km apart, to be 29° and 47°, as shown in the figure.

Question

Find the distance of the plane from point A.

distance from A = _______ km

Find the elevation of the plane.

height =  _______ km

Answer 1

To find the distance of the plane from point A, we can use the tangent of the angle of depression. The tangent of 29° is 0.5536, so the distance of the plane from point A is 5.9 km * 0.5536 = 3.2664 km.

To find the elevation of the plane, we can use the tangent of 47°. The tangent of 47° is 1.7321, so the elevation of the plane is 5.9 km * 1.7321 = 10.2338 km.