Question

A light post sits at the end of my driveway. Given that the angle of depression from a squirrel on top

of the light to the start of my driveway is 3 1° and the height of the post is 10.5 feet, how long is my driveway?

Answer 1

17.5 feet

Explanation:

This is a right angled triangle. When we deal with or want to solve a question involving angle of depression, we use the Trigonometric function of tangent

Angle of Depression = θ = 31°

tan θ = Opposite side / Adjacent side

Opposite side = Height of the post = 10.5 feet

Adjacent side = Length of the driveway = Unknown

Hence,

tan 31° = 10.5 feet/Adjacent side

Cross Multiply

= tan 31° × Adjacent side = 10.5feet

Adjacent side = 10.5 feet/ tan 31°

= 17.474934565 feet

≈ 17.5 feet

The length of the driveway is approximately 17.5 feet