Problema Solution
From the top of a 325-ft lighthouse, the angle of depression to a ship in the ocean is 30°. How far is the ship from the base of the lighthouse?
Answer provided by our tutors
We have a triangle with a height of 325 ft perpendicular to the ground with a top angle of 90-30 = 60 degrees.
We need to find the base:
tan(60) = opposite / adjacent
tan(60) = base/325
base = 325 * tan(60)
base = 562.92 ft
The ship is 562.92 ft away from the base of the lighthouse.