An owl swoops down from its perch in a tree at 30 feet to catch field mice. It follows the function h=6t2 −24t+30

, where t is the time in seconds and h is the height in feet. Which of the following best interprets the vertex?(1 point)
Responses

(30,0)

left parenthesis 30 comma 0 right parenthesis
(0,30)
left parenthesis 0 comma 30 right parenthesis
(6,2)
left parenthesis 6 comma 2 right parenthesis
(2,6)

1 answer

To interpret the vertex of the function \( h(t) = 6t^2 - 24t + 30 \), we first need to determine the time \( t \) at which the height \( h \) is maximized or minimized. Given that this is a quadratic function that opens upwards (since the coefficient of \( t^2 \) is positive), the vertex will give us the minimum height.

The \( t \)-coordinate of the vertex of a quadratic function in the form \( at^2 + bt + c \) can be found using the formula:

\[ t = -\frac{b}{2a} \]

Here, \( a = 6 \) and \( b = -24 \). Plugging these values into the formula gives:

\[ t = -\frac{-24}{2 \cdot 6} = \frac{24}{12} = 2 \]

Now we can find the height at \( t = 2 \) by substituting \( t \) back into the function:

\[ h(2) = 6(2)^2 - 24(2) + 30 \] \[ = 6(4) - 48 + 30 \] \[ = 24 - 48 + 30 \] \[ = 6 \]

So the vertex is at the point \( (2, 6) \), which means at \( t = 2 \) seconds, the owl is at a minimum height of 6 feet.

Thus, the best interpretation of the vertex among the options you provided is:

(2, 6).