From the top of a 100 ft air traffic control tower, an airplane is observed flying in at an angle of 32. If the airplane is 3000 feet away, what is the plane's altitude?

Question

asked Sep 5, 2022 175k views

1 Answer

Rayhane Mama · Answer 1 · 2022-09-11T06:35:10+0000

Answer: 1974.6

Explanation:

Given

From the top of the air traffic control tower which is h=100 ft tall

The plane is observed at an angle of
$32^(\circ)$

Horizontal distance is 3000 ft

As per the diagram, we can write

$\Rightarrow \tan 32^(\circ)=(H)/(3000)\\\\\Rightarrow H=3000\tan 32^(\circ)=1874.6\ ft$

So, the plane altitude from the ground is
$H+100=1974.6\ ft$