Hilary was scuba diving. She was 30 feet below the surface when she swam toward the dive platform. She dropped her camera when she was 10 feet from the surface and had to swim down 15 feet to get it. At what elevation did Hilary retrieve her camera?

Question

Negative 10 feet
Negative 15 feet
Negative 25 feet
Negative 30 feet

Answer 1

To determine the elevation where Hilary retrieved her camera, let's break down the information provided:

1. Hilary was initially 30 feet below the surface, which can be represented as -30 feet.
2. She swam toward the surface and was 10 feet from the surface when she dropped her camera. Since the surface is at 0 feet, being 10 feet from the surface means she was at -10 feet.
3. After dropping her camera, she swam down 15 feet to retrieve it.

To find out at what elevation she retrieved her camera, we calculate:

• Starting from -10 feet and swimming down 15 feet:

\[ -10 - 15 = -25 \text{ feet} \]

Thus, Hilary retrieved her camera at -25 feet.

The correct answer is Negative 25 feet.