Due to excessive heat, the water level in a dam decreased by 8.8 meters last month. Now, the water level is 95.3 meters. Which equation represents the water level, w , of the dam last month? What was the water level last month?

Answer 1

To determine the water level in the dam last month, we can represent the current water level with an equation that connects it to last month's water level.

Let \( w \) represent the water level of the dam last month. According to the problem, the water level decreased by 8.8 meters over the course of last month, and the current water level is 95.3 meters. We can express this relationship with the following equation:

\[ w - 8.8 = 95.3 \]

To find the water level last month (\( w \)), we can solve for \( w \) by adding 8.8 to both sides of the equation:

\[ w = 95.3 + 8.8 \]

Now we'll calculate \( w \):

\[ w = 104.1 \]

Therefore, the water level last month was \( 104.1 \) meters.

The final answers are:

• The equation representing the water level last month is: \( w - 8.8 = 95.3 \)
• The water level last month was: \( 104.1 \) meters.