Question
After an airplane takes off, it travels 10.4 km west, 8.7 km north, and 2.1 km up. How far is it from the take-off point?
Answer
The final answer to this question is 13.7 kilometers (km)
Explanation
We will follow the following steps to solve the problem
Data: Revealed information from the question
If we allow negative x to represent the western direction = 10.4 km .
Then the eastern direction will be, x = – 10.4 km
Along the northern direction, we have y = 8.7 km
We also have z = 2.1 km
Unknown: Unrevealed information
Distance from the takeoff point, S = ?
Formula: The equation that will help us solve the problem
S = √ (x2 + y2 + z2)
Solution
We will now apply our data into the formula to solve the problem
S = √ (x2 + y2 + z2) = √ ((-10.4)2 + 8.72 + 2.12)
Which implies that
S = √(108.6 + 75.69 + 4.41) = √188.7
Therefore, the distance from the takeoff point is
S = 13.7 km
Hence, the distance s from the takeoff point is 13.7 kilometers.
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