• Home
  • Textbooks
  • Trigonometry
  • Applications of Trigonometry and Vectors

Trigonometry

Margaret L. Lial, John Hornsby, David I. Schneider

Chapter 7

Applications of Trigonometry and Vectors - all with Video Answers

Educators


Section 1

Oblique Triangles and the Law of Sines

View

Problem 1

Fill in the blank(s) to correctly complete each sentence.
A triangle that is not a right triangle is a(n) _________ triangle.

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 2

Fill in the blank(s) to correctly complete each sentence.
The measures of the three sides and three angles of a triangle can be found if at least one _______ and any other two measures are known.

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 3

Fill in the blank(s) to correctly complete each sentence.
If we know three ______ of a triangle, we cannot find a unique solution for the triangle.

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 4

Fill in the blank(s) to correctly complete each sentence.
In the law of sines, $\frac{a}{\sin A}=\frac{b} {\text{__}}=\frac{c}{\text{___}}$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 5

Fill in the blank(s) to correctly complete each sentence.
An alternative form of the law of sines is $\frac{\sin A}{\text{___}}=\frac{\sin B}{\text{___}}=\frac{\sin C}{\text{____}}$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 6

Fill in the blank(s) to correctly complete each sentence.
For any triangle $A B C,$ its area can be found using the formula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} a b$ _______.

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
01:25

Problem 7

Consider each case and determine whether there is sufficient information to solve the triangle using the law of sines.
Two angles and the side included between them are known.

Ashly Sunny
Ashly Sunny
Numerade Educator
01:05

Problem 8

Consider each case and determine whether there is sufficient information to solve the triangle using the law of sines.
Two angles and a side opposite one of them are known.

Ashly Sunny
Ashly Sunny
Numerade Educator
01:04

Problem 9

Consider each case and determine whether there is sufficient information to solve the triangle using the law of sines.
Two sides and the angle included between them are known.

Ashly Sunny
Ashly Sunny
Numerade Educator
00:56

Problem 10

Consider each case and determine whether there is sufficient information to solve the triangle using the law of sines.
Three sides are known.

Ashly Sunny
Ashly Sunny
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 11

Find the length of each side labeled a. Do not use a calculator.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 12

Find the length of each side labeled a. Do not use a calculator.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 13

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 14

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 15

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 16

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 17

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{array}{l}
A=68.41^{\circ}, B=54.23^{\circ} \\
a=12.75 \mathrm{ft}
\end{array}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 18

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{array}{l}
C=74.08^{\circ}, B=69.38^{\circ} \\
c=45.38 \mathrm{m}
\end{array}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
03:24

Problem 19

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{aligned}
&A=87.2^{\circ}, b=75.9 \mathrm{yd}\\
&C=74.3^{\circ}
\end{aligned}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:10

Problem 20

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{aligned}
&B=38^{\circ} 40^{\prime}, a=19.7 \mathrm{cm}\\
&C=91^{\circ} 40^{\prime}
\end{aligned}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:07

Problem 21

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{aligned}
&B=20^{\circ} 50^{\prime}, C=103^{\circ} 10^{\prime}\\
&A C=132 \mathrm{ft}
\end{aligned}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:06

Problem 22

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{aligned}
&A=35.3^{\circ}, B=52.8^{\circ}\\
&A C=675 \mathrm{ft}
\end{aligned}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:02

Problem 23

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{aligned}
&A=39.70^{\circ}, C=30.35^{\circ}\\
&b=39.74 \mathrm{m}
\end{aligned}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 24

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{array}{l}
C=71.83^{\circ}, B=42.57^{\circ} \\
a=2.614 \mathrm{cm}
\end{array}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 25

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{array}{l}
B=42.88^{\circ}, C=102.40^{\circ} \\
b=3974 \mathrm{ft}
\end{array}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 26

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{array}{l}
C=50.15^{\circ}, A=106.1^{\circ} \\
c=3726 \mathrm{yd}
\end{array}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 27

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{aligned}
&A=39^{\circ} 54^{\prime}, a=268.7 \mathrm{m}\\
&B=42^{\circ} 32^{\prime}
\end{aligned}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 28

Determine the remaining sides and angles of each triangle $A B C$.
$$\begin{array}{l}
C=79^{\circ} 18^{\prime}, c=39.81 \mathrm{mm} \\
A=32^{\circ} 57^{\prime}
\end{array}$$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 29

Answer each question.
Why can the law of sines not be used to solve a triangle if we are given only the lengths of the three sides of the triangle?

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 30

Answer each question.
In Example $1,$ we begin (as seen there) by solving for $b$ and $C .$ Why is it a better idea to solve for $c$ by using $a$ and $\sin A$ than by using $b$ and $\sin B ?$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
01:18

Problem 31

Answer each question.
Eli Maor, a perceptive trigonometry student, makes this statement: "If we know any two angles and one side of a triangle, then the triangle is uniquely determined." Why is this true? Refer to the congruence axioms given in this section.

Aman Gupta
Aman Gupta
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 32

Answer each question.
In a triangle, if $a$ is twice as long as $b,$ is $A$ necessarily twice as large as $B ?$

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 33

Solve each problem.
Distance across a River To find the distance $A B$ across a river, a surveyor laid off a distance $B C=354 \mathrm{m}$ on one side of the river. It is found that $B=112^{\circ} 10^{\prime}$ and $C=15^{\circ} 20^{\prime}$ Find $A B$. See the figure.
(Figure can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 34

Solve each problem.
Distance across a Canyon To determine the distance $R S$ across a deep canyon, Rhonda lays off a distance $T R=582$ yd. She then finds that $T=32^{\circ} 50^{\prime}$ and $R=102^{\circ} 20^{\prime} .$ Find $R S .$ See the figure.
(figure can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
01:45

Problem 35

Solve each problem.
Distance a Ship Travels A ship is sailing due north. At a certain point the bearing of a lighthouse $12.5 \mathrm{km}$ away is $\mathrm{N} 38.8^{\circ} \mathrm{E}$. Later on, the captain notices that the bearing of the lighthouse has become $S$ 44.2 $^{\circ}$ E. How far did the ship travel between the two observations of the lighthouse?

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
01:52

Problem 36

Solve each problem.
Distance between Radio Direction Finders Radio direction finders are placed at points $A$ and $B,$ which are $3.46 \mathrm{mi}$ apart on an east-west line, with $A$ west of $B$ From $A$ the bearing of a certain radio transmitter is $47.7^{\circ},$ and from $B$ the bearing is $302.5^{\circ} .$ Find the distance of the transmitter from $A$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:36

Problem 37

Solve each problem.
Distance between a Ship and a Lighthouse The bearing of a lighthouse from a ship was found to be $\mathrm{N} 37^{\circ} \mathrm{E}$. After the ship sailed $2.5 \mathrm{mi}$ due south, the new bearing was N $25^{\circ} \mathrm{E}$. Find the distance between the ship and the lighthouse at each location.

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:42

Problem 38

Solve each problem.
Distance across a River Standing on one bank of a river flowing north, Mark
notices a tree on the opposite bank at a bearing of $115.45^{\circ} .$ Lisa is on the same bank as Mark, but $428.3 \mathrm{m}$ away. She notices that the bearing of the tree is $45.47^{\circ} .$ The two banks are parallel. What is the distance across the river?

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 39

Height of a Balloon A balloonist is directly above a straight road $1.5 \mathrm{mi}$ long that joins two villages. She finds that the town closer to her is at an angle of depression of $35^{\circ},$ and the farther town is at an angle of depression of $31^{\circ} .$ How high above the ground is the balloon?
(Figure can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 40

Measurement of a Folding Chair A folding chair is to have a seat 12.0 in. deep with angles as shown in the figure. How far down from the seat should the crossing legs be joined? (Find length $x$ in the figure.)
(Figure can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 41

Solve each problem.
Angle Formed by Radii of Gears Three gears are arranged as shown in the figure. Find angle $\theta .$
(Figure can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
03:40

Problem 42

Solve each problem.
Distance between Atoms Three atoms with atomic radii of $2.0,3.0,$ and 4.5 are arranged as in the figure. Find the distance between the centers of atoms $A$ and $C$
(figure can't copy)

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
04:04

Problem 43

Solve each problem.
Distance to the Moon The moon is a relatively close celestial object, so its distance
can be measured directly by taking two different photographs at precisely the same time from two different locations. The moon will have a different angle of elevation at each location. On April $29,1976,$ at 11: 35 A.M., the lunar angles of elevation during a partial solar eclipse at Bochum in upper Germany and at Donaueschingen in lower Germany were measured as $52.6997^{\circ}$ and $52.7430^{\circ},$ respectively. The two cities are $398 \mathrm{km}$ apart.
Calculate the distance to the moon, to the nearest thousand kilometers, from Bochum on this day, and compare it with the actual value of $406,000 \mathrm{km} .$ Disregard the curvature of Earth in this calculation.

Christy Galilei
Christy Galilei
Numerade Educator
03:38

Problem 44

Solve each problem.
Ground Distances Measured by Aerial Photography The distance covered by an aerial photograph is determined by both the focal length of the camera and the tilt of the camera from the perpendicular to the ground. A camera lens with a 12 -in. focal length will have an angular coverage of $60^{\circ} .$ If an aerial photograph is taken with this camera tilted $\theta=35^{\circ}$ at an altitude of $5000 \mathrm{ft}$, calculate to the nearest foot the ground distance $d$ that will be shown in this photograph.

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:38

Problem 45

Solve each problem.
Ground Distances Measured by Aerial Photography Refer to Exercise $44 .$ A camera lens with a 6-in. focal length has an angular coverage of $86^{\circ}$. Suppose an aerial photograph is taken vertically with no tilt at an altitude of 3500 ft over ground with an increasing slope of $5^{\circ},$ as shown in the figure. Calculate the ground distance $C B,$ to the nearest hundred feet, that will appear in the resulting photograph.
(Figure can't copy)

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
03:52

Problem 46

Solve each problem.
Ground Distances Measured by Aerial Photography Repeat Exercise 45 if the camera lens has an 8.25 -in. focal length with an angular coverage of $72^{\circ} .$
(Figure can't copy)

Aman Gupta
Aman Gupta
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 47

Find the area of each triangle using the formula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} b h,$ and then verify that the for. mula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} a b \sin C$ gives the same result.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 48

Find the area of each triangle using the formula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} b h,$ and then verify that the for. mula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} a b \sin C$ gives the same result.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 49

Find the area of each triangle using the formula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} b h,$ and then verify that the for. mula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} a b \sin C$ gives the same result.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 50

Find the area of each triangle using the formula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} b h,$ and then verify that the for. mula $\mathscr{A}=\frac{1}{2} a b \sin C$ gives the same result.
(Angle can't copy)

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
01:02

Problem 51

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$A=42.5^{\circ}, b=13.6 \mathrm{m}, c=10.1 \mathrm{m}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
01:02

Problem 52

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$C=72.2^{\circ}, b=43.8 \mathrm{ft}, a=35.1 \mathrm{ft}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
01:25

Problem 53

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$B=124.5^{\circ}, a=30.4 \mathrm{cm}, c=28.4 \mathrm{cm}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
01:00

Problem 54

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$C=142.7^{\circ}, a=21.9 \mathrm{km}, b=24.6 \mathrm{km}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
01:21

Problem 55

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$A=56.80^{\circ}, b=32.67 \text { in., } c=52.89 \text { in }$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
01:11

Problem 56

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$A=34.97^{\circ}, b=35.29 \mathrm{m}, c=28.67 \mathrm{m}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
02:31

Problem 57

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$A=30.50^{\circ}, b=13.00 \mathrm{cm}, C=112.60^{\circ}$$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
02:22

Problem 58

Find the area of each triangle $A B C$.
$$A=59.80^{\circ}, b=15.00 \mathrm{m}, C=53.10^{\circ}$$

Christy Galilei
Christy Galilei
Numerade Educator
01:37

Problem 59

Solve each problem.
Area of a Metal Plate A painter is going to apply a special coating to a triangular metal plate on a new building. Two sides measure $16.1 \mathrm{m}$ and $15.2 \mathrm{m} .$ She knows that the angle between these sides is $125^{\circ} .$ What is the area of the surface she plans to cover with the coating?

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
View

Problem 60

Solve each problem.
Area of a Triangular Lot A real estate agent wants to find the area of a triangular lot. A surveyor takes measurements and finds that two sides are $52.1 \mathrm{m}$ and $21.3 \mathrm{m}$ and the angle between them is $42.2^{\circ} .$ What is the area of the triangular lot?

Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson
Numerade Educator
02:38

Problem 61

Solve each problem.
Triangle Inscribed in a Circle For a triangle inscribed in a circle of radius $r,$ the law of sines ratios
$$\frac{a}{\sin A}, \quad \frac{b}{\sin B}, \quad \text { and } \quad \frac{c}{\sin C} \quad \text { have value } 2 r$$
The circle in the figure has diameter $1 .$ What are the values of $a, b,$ and $c ?$ (Note: This result provides an alternative way to define the sine function for angles between $0^{\circ}$ and $180^{\circ} .$ It was used nearly 2000 yr ago by the mathematician Ptolemy to construct one of the earliest trigonometric tables.)
(Angle can't copy)

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
06:27

Problem 62

Solve each problem.
Theorem of Ptolemy The following theorem is also attributed to Ptolemy:
In a quadrilateral inscribed in a circle, the product of the diagonals is equal to the sum of the products of the opposite sides.
The circle in the figure has diameter 1. Use Ptolemy's theorem to derive the formula for the sine of the sum of two angles.

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
04:35

Problem 63

Solve each problem.
Law of sines Several of the exercises on right triangle applications involved a figure similar to the one shown here, in which angles $\alpha$ and $\beta$ and the length of line segment $A B$ are known, and the length of side $C D$ is to be determined. Use the law of sines to obtain $x$ in terms of $\alpha, \beta,$ and $d$

Harmender Singh Yadav
Harmender Singh Yadav
Numerade Educator
04:03

Problem 64

Solve each problem.
Aerial photographs can be used to provide coordinates of ordered pairs to determine distances on the ground. Suppose we assign coordinates as shown in the figure. If an object's photographic coordinates are $(x, y),$ then its ground coordinates $(X, Y)$ in feet can be computed using the following formulas.
$$X=\frac{(a-h) x}{f \sec \theta-y \sin \theta}, \quad Y=\frac{(a-h) y \cos \theta}{f \sec \theta-y \sin \theta}$$
Here, $f$ is focal length of the camera in inches, $a$ is altitude in feet of the airplane, and $h$ is elevation in feet of the object. Suppose that a house has photographic coordinates $\left(x_{H}, y_{H}\right)=(0.9,3.5)$ with elevation $150 \mathrm{ft}$, and a nearby forest fire has photographic coordinates $\left(x_{F}, y_{F}\right)=(2.1,-2.4)$ and is at elevation 690 ft. Also suppose the photograph was taken at $7400 \mathrm{ft}$ by a camera with focal length 6 in. and tilt angle $\theta=4.1^{\circ} .$
(a) Use the formulas to find the ground coordinates of the house and the fire to the nearest tenth of a foot.
(b) Use the distance formula $d=\sqrt{\left(x_{2}-x_{1}\right)^{2}+\left(y_{2}-y_{1}\right)^{2}}$ to find the distance on the ground between the house and the fire to the nearest tenth of a foot.
(Figure can't copy)

Aman Gupta
Aman Gupta
Numerade Educator