Two ships leave the same port at 7.am. The first ship sails towards europe on a 54 degree course at a constant rate of 36 mi/h. The second ship,neither a tropical destination, sails on a 144 degree course at a constant speed of 42 mi/h. Find the distance between the ships at 11. Am.

Answer 1

I hope this helps anyone.
11-7=4
36x4=144
42x4=168
Draw a triangle with an angle of 54 degrees. Then include the 54 degree angle in the 144 degree angle. Hope this makes sense.
Angle 144 overlaps angle 54.
144-54=90
So the angle of the distance between the ships is 90.
Then use the law of cosines
a^2=b^2+c^2-2bc(cosA)
a^2=144^2+168^2-2(144)(168)cos(90)
a^2=48960
a=√48960=221.27 miles
the final answer is 221.27 miles