Two buildings 73 meters apart on either side of a highway are shown. From the ninth floor window of the smaller building, Jeffrey looks to the top of the building at an angle of elevation of 31º. He looks to the base of the taller building at an angle of depression of 42º. Find the height of the taller building.

Question

Two buildings 73 meters apart on either side of a highway are shown.  From the ninth floor window of the smaller building, Jeffrey looks to the top of the building at an angle of elevation of 31º.  He looks to the base of the taller building at an angle of depression of 42º.  Find the height of the taller building.

mathhelper · Answer

I sketched the situation and saw that height of tall building = 73tan31° + 73tan42° = ...

oobleck · Answer

If the 9th floor is x meters up, and the taller building's height is h meters, then if you draw a diagram it should be clear that h = 73 tan42º + 73 tan31º