Let the distance of the boat from the foot of the cliff be x.
Using trigonometry, we know that:
tan 60° = opposite / adjacent
where opposite = 40m (height of the cliff) and adjacent = x (distance of boat from foot of cliff).
tan 60° = 1.732 (rounded to 3 decimal places)
1.732 = 40 / x
x = 40 / 1.732
x ≈ 23.094
Therefore, the boat is approximately 23.094 meters away from the foot of the cliff.
The angle of depression of a boat from the top of a cliff 40m high is 60m. Calculate the distance of the boat from the foot of the cliff
1 answer