*20.  A person is standing at the edge of the water and looking out at the ocean (see the drawing). The height of the person’s eyes above the water is h = 1.6 m, and the radius of the earth is R = 6.38 x 106 m. (a) How far is it to the horizon? In other words, what is the distance d from the person’s eyes to the horizon? (Note: At the horizon the angle between the line of sight and the radius of the earth is 90°.) (b) Express this distance in miles.

 

 

So we have a right triangle which must follow the Pythagorean Theorem.

 

For this triangle, we get

We are looking for d so solving for d

 

 

Solving for d

 

 

Converting to miles

 

 

 

 

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This page last updated on January 11, 2020