Question

How high does the satellite have to be in order to see two cities at the same time if the cities are 2250 mi apart? (Round your answer to the nearest mile

I thought it was 225 but I was wrong please help

Answer 1

Draw a diagram. The line from the satellite and a city is tangent to the radius from the center of the earth. If that radius is r, then the angle θ subtended by the satellite and one city is

θ = 1125/r

So, if the satellite is h mi high,

r/(r+h) = cosθ
h = r/cosθ - r = r(secθ-1)

Look up r, figure θ, then figure h.