Question

A 15-foot ladder leans against a wall so that the ladder's angle of elevation is 42°. Find x, the distance from the base of the ladder to the building. (Hint: Draw it out!)(1 point)
Responses

x = 20.18 ft
x = 20.18 ft

x = 22.42 ft
x = 22.42 ft

x = 10.04 ft
x = 10.04 ft

x = 11.15 ft

Answer 1

Use the cosine (adjacent = hypotenuse × cosθ):

x = 15 cos 42° ≈ 15(0.7431) ≈ 11.15 ft.

So x = 11.15 ft.