Asked by Andre

An airplane pilot wishes to fly due west. A wind of 82.0 km/h is blowing toward the south.
If the airspeed of the plane (its speed in still air) is 380.0 km/h, in which direction should the pilot head?

This is what I did. I let
theta = arcsin(82.0/380.0)
theta = 12 degrees North of West

but I got it wrong I guess...Did I miss something?

Answers

Answered by MathMate
The logic sounds good to me.
The southward component is 82 km/hr which is cancelled by 380 sin(θ).
The θ that I calculated is 12.462 degrees approx. north of west.
Is your answer from the computer requiring a definite number of decimal places, or is it on paper? Or perhaps the answer is expressed bearing, or 282.462 degrees (clockwise from the north)?
Answered by Dreskillz89
Ah, that was the problem. I only put 12 degrees, not 12.462.
Thanks!
Answered by MathMate
You're very welcome!
There are no AI answers yet. The ability to request AI answers is coming soon!

Related Questions