16Hit1600
Geometry and TrigonometryVery hardTower height from a tangent

Geometry and Trigonometry practice question

From a point on level ground 50 metres from the base of a tower, the angle of elevation to the top of the tower has a tangent of 0.6. How tall is the tower, in metres?

Answer: 30

tan θ = height/50 = 0.6, so height = 30.

Common wrong answers

If you answered 20
20 uses 50 − 30, a misreading.
If you answered 83.33
83.33 divides 50 by 0.6.
If you answered 0.012
0.012 divides 0.6 by 50.

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