Question

The moon forms a right triangle with the earth and the sun during one of its phases I show a scientist measures the angle acts and the distance Y between the earth and the moon. Using complete sentences, explain how the scientist can use only these two measurements to calculate the distance between the earth and the sun.

Answer 1

Explanation:

The tangent of an angle in a right triangle is the opposite side divided by the adjacent side.

If d is the distance between the earth and the sun, then:

tan x = y / d

Solving for d:

d = y / tan x