A tree that is 8.5 m tall casts a shadow 6 m long. At what angle are the sun's rays hitting the ground?
+23254 Drawing a triangle from the point on the ground to the base of the tree to the top of the tree and back to the point on the ground creates a right triangle.
From the point of view of the point on the ground, the side of the triangle from that point to the base of the tree (the shadow = 6m) is the adjacent side and the height of the tree (8.5m) is the opposite side.
Tangent is defined as opposite / adjacent ---> tan(Angle) = 8.5 / 6
Angle = tan-1(8.5/6)
Angle = 54.8° (approximately)
+23254 Drawing a triangle from the point on the ground to the base of the tree to the top of the tree and back to the point on the ground creates a right triangle.
From the point of view of the point on the ground, the side of the triangle from that point to the base of the tree (the shadow = 6m) is the adjacent side and the height of the tree (8.5m) is the opposite side.
Tangent is defined as opposite / adjacent ---> tan(Angle) = 8.5 / 6
Angle = tan-1(8.5/6)
Angle = 54.8° (approximately)
