Trigonometry
Trigonometry
Trigonometric Ratios
Student Text
Contents
Section 34.1 34.2 34.3 34.4 34.5 Pythagoras' Theorem Further Work With Pythagoras' Theorem Sine, Cosine and Tangent Finding Lengths in Right Angled Triangles Finding Angles in Right Angled Triangles
Note
The longest side of a right angled triangle is called the hypotenuse.
Proof
Draw a square of side b + c , as shown opposite. Join up the points PQ, QR, RS, SP as shown, to give a quadrilateral, PQRS. In fact, PQRS is a square as each side is equal to a (as the four triangles are congruent) and at the point P,
b y S x c
c x
P y a a
b c x Q y a b
a y b R x c
angle SPQ = 90
Similarly for the other three angles in PQRS. Thus PQRS is a square, and equating areas,
1 2 a 2 + 4 bc = (b + c) 2
a 2 + 2 bc = b 2 + 2 bc + c 2 Hence a2 = c2 + b2
34.1
Worked Example 1
Find the length of the hypotenuse of the triangle shown in the diagram. Give your answer correct to 2 decimal places.
4 cm
Solution
6 cm
As this is a right angled triangle, Pythagoras' Theorem can be used. If the length of the hypotenuse is a, then b = 4 and c = 6 . So a2 = b2 + c2 a2 = 42 + 62 a 2 = 16 + 36 a 2 = 52
a = 52 = 7.2 cm
Worked Example 2
Find the length of the side of the triangle marked x in the diagram.
x 6 cm
Solution
3 cm
As this is a right angled triangle, Pythagoras' Theorem can be used. Here the length of the hypotenuse is 6 cm, so writing a = 6 cm and c = 3 cm with b = x , we have a2 = b2 + c2 6 2 = x 2 + 32 36 = x 2 + 9 36 9 = x 2 36 9 = x 2 27 = x 2 27 = x x = 5.2 cm (to one decimal place)
Exercises
1. Find the length of the side marked x in each triangle. (a)
4m x
(b)
x 5 cm 12 cm
3m
34.1
(c)
15 cm x
(d)
26 m 10 m x
12 cm 6 cm
(e)
6m
x 8m
(f)
10 cm
(g)
36 cm
20 m
25 m
(h)
x 15 cm
2.
Find the length of the side marked x in each triangle. Give your answers correct to 2 decimal places. (a)
7 cm x
15 cm x
(b)
11 cm
14 cm
(c)
4 cm
(d)
8 cm
5m
7m
(e)
x 10 cm
(f)
x 7 cm
8 cm
12 cm
2m
(g)
6m
5m
(h)
12 m
34.1
(i)
(j)
10 cm
x 5m 4m
18 cm
(k)
x 9.4 m 4.6 m
(l)
3.3 m x 7.8 m x
(m)
8.9 cm
(n)
5.2 cm
2.3 m
5.4 m
3.
Andre runs diagonally across a school field, while Rakeif runs around the edge. (a) (b) (c) How far does Rakeif run? How far does Andre run? How much further does Rakeif run than Andre?
200 m
Rakeif Andre
120 m
4.
A guy rope is attached to the top of a tent pole, at a height of 1.5 metres above the ground, and to a tent peg 2 metres from the base of the pole. How long is the guy rope?
Pole 1.5 m
5.
Deneen is 1.4 metres tall. At a certain time her shadow is 2 metres long. What is the distance from the top of her head to the tip of her shadow?
6.
A rope of length 10 metres is stretched from the top of a pole 3 metres high until it reaches ground level. How far is the end of the line from the base of the pole?
2m
7.
A rope is fixed between two trees that are 10 metres apart. When a child hangs on to the centre of the rope, it sags so that the centre is 2 metres below the level of the ends. Find the length of the rope.
10 m
34.1
8.
The roof on a house that is 6 metres wide peaks at a height of 3 metres above the top of the walls. Find the length of the sloping side of the roof.
3m
6m
9.
The picture shows a shed. Find the length, AB, of the roof.
B 2.5 m 2m 2m
10.
Rohan walks 3 km east and then 10 km north. (a) (b) How far is he from his starting point? He then walks east until he is 20 km from his starting point. How much further east has he walked
P Q
11.
Jerine is building a shed. The base PQRS of the shed should be a rectangle measuring 2.6 metres by 1.4 metres. To check that or if the base is rectangular, Jerine has to measure the diagonal PR. (a) (b)
1.4 m S 2.6 m R
Calculate the length of PR when the base is rectangular. You must show all your working. When building the shed Jerine finds angle PSR > 90 . She measures PR. Which of the following statements is true? X: Y: Z: PR is greater than it should be. PR is less than it should be. PR is the right length.
Information
The Greeks, (in their analysis of the arcs of circles) were the first to establish the relationships or ratios between the sides and the angles of a right angled triangle. The Chinese also recognised the ratios of sides in a right angled triangle and some survey problems involving such ratios were quoted in Zhou Bi Suan Jing. It is interesting to note that sound waves are related to the sine curve. This discovery by Joseph Fourier, a French mathematician, is the essence of the electronic musical instrument developments today.
CIMT and e-Learning Jamaica 5
Solution
First consider triangle ABC. The unknown length of the hypotenuse has been marked y.
4 cm
B
C
y 2 = ( 4 cm ) + ( 4 cm )
y
2
= 16 cm + 16 cm
4 cm
y 2 = 32 cm 2
4 cm
Triangle ACD can now be considered, using the value for y 2 . From the triangle, x = y + 2 , and using y = 32 cm gives x x x
2 2 2 2 2
D 2 cm C x y
= 32 cm + 4 cm = 36 cm 2 = 6 cm
x 2 = 36 cm 2
Note
When finding the side x, it is not necessary to find
Worked Example 2
Find the value of x as shown on the diagram.
13 m 2x
Solution
Using Pythagoras' Theorem gives
132 = (2 x ) + (3 x )
2 2
3x
169 = 4 x 2 + 9 x 2 169 = 13 x 2 13 = x 2 x = 13
= 3.61 m
(since (2 x ) = 2 2 x 2 = 4 x 2 )
34.2
Exercises
1. Find the length of the side marked x in each diagram. (a)
7 8 x 6
(b)
5
(c)
(d)
6 4 3
10
x 4
12
(e)
4 2 10 x
(f)
15 x
2.
Find the length of the side marked x in the following situations. (a)
x 20
(b)
8 4x
(c)
4x
(d)
5x
4x 20
3.
(b)
13
9 B 15
(c)
6.5 6 C 2.5
7
(d)
130 120 D 40
34.2
4.
A ladder of length 4 metres leans against a vertical wall. The foot of the ladder is 2 metres from the wall. A plank that has a length of 5 metres rests on the ladder, so that one end is halfway up the ladder. (a) (b) (c) How high is the top of the ladder? How high is the top of the plank? How far is the bottom of the plank from the wall?
2m
5.
The diagram shows how the sign that hangs over a food store is suspended by a rope and a triangular metal bracket. Find the length of the rope.
160 cm
Rope
50 cm 90 cm Wall
FISH FOOD AND STORE CHIPS
Metal Bracket
6.
The diagram shows how a cable is attached to the mast of a sailing dingy. A bar pushes the cable out away from the mast. Find the total length of the cable.
Mast 80 cm Bar 40 cm
240 cm
Cable
Deck 80 cm
7.
A helicopter flies in a straight line until it reaches a point 20 km east and 15 km north of its starting point. It then turns through 90 and travels a further 10 km. (a) (b) How far is the helicopter from its starting point? If the helicopter turned 90 the other way, how far would it end up from its starting point?
34.2
30 cm
8.
A cone is placed on a wedge. The dimensions of the wedge are shown in the diagram. The cone has a slant height of 30 cm. Find the height of the cone.
4 cm 20 cm
9.
A simple crane is to be constructed using an isosceles triangular metal frame. The top of the frame is to be 10 metres above ground level and 5 metres away from the base of the crane, as shown in the diagram. Find the length of each side of the triangle.
5m
10 m
10 m
10.
A thin steel tower is supported on one side by two cables. Find the height of the tower and the length of the longer cable.
40 m
25 m
11.
An isosceles triangle has two sides of length 8 cm and one of length 4 cm. Find the height of the triangle and its area.
height
12.
Find the area of each the equilateral triangles that have sides of lengths (a) (b) (c) 8 cm 20 cm 2 cm
Opposite
For a right angled triangle, the sine, cosine and tangent of the angle are defined as:
Adjacent
sin =
opposite hypotenuse
cos =
adjacent hypotenuse
tan =
opposite adjacent
Sin will always have the same value for any particular angle, regardless of the size of the triangle. The same is true for cos and tan .
Worked Example 1
For the triangle and angle shown, state which side is: (a) (b) (c) the hypotenuse the adjacent the opposite.
A
Solution
(a) (b) (c) The hypotenuse is the longest side, which for this triangle is CB.
The adjacent is the side that is next to the angle , which for this triangle is AB. The opposite side is the side that is opposite the angle , which for this triangle is AC.
Worked Example 2
Write down the values of sin , cos and tan for the triangle shown. Then use a calculator to find the angle in each case.
8
10
Solution
First, opposite adjacent hypotenuse = 8 = 6 = 10
10
34.3
sin = = =
cos = = =
tan = = =
opposite adjacent 8 6 4 3
Note
In the triangle opposite, we know that b c sin = , cos = a a Thus sin + cos
2 2
a (hyp) b (opp)
b c = + a a
c (adj)
b2 c2 + 2 a2 a
b2 + c2 a2
sin 2 + cos 2 =
This result
a2 = 1 a2
2 sin 2 45 sin 2 45
or
=1
1 2
sin 45 = cos 45 =
1 2
11
34.3
Exercises
1. For each triangle, state which side is the hypotenuse, the adjacent and the opposite. (a)
B
(b)
(c)
I G
A
(d) J
(e)
(f)
L
O
2.
For each triangle, write sin , cos and tan as fractions. (a)
3 5
(b)
5 13
(c)
8 15
12
17
(d)
1.5
(e)
(f)
12
2.5
50
48
12.5
3.5
14
3.
Use a calculator to find the following. Give your answers correct to 3 decimal places. (a) (d) (g) (j)
sin 30 cos 66
tan 75 tan 33
tan 37 cos 48
cos 45 sin 45
12
34.3
4.
Use a calculator to find in each case. Give your answers correct to 1 decimal place. (a) (d) (g) (j)
cos = 0.5 sin = 0.821
5.
(a)
Draw a right angled triangle with an angle of 50 as shown in the diagram, and measure the length of each side.
(b)
Using
50
sin =
opposite hypotenuse
cos =
adjacent hypotenuse
tan =
opposite adjacent
and the lengths of the sides of your triangle, find sin 50, cos 50 and tan 50 . (c) (d) Use your calculator to find sin 50, cos 50 and tan 50 . Compare your results to (b) and (c).
6.
For the triangle shown, write down expressions for: (a) (c) (e)
cos
tan sin
sin
cos
y
tan
z
50 y
13
34.4
Worked Example 1
Find the length of the side marked x in the triangle shown.
Solution
In this triangle,
20 cm
hypotenuse = 20 cm opposite = x cm
70
sin =
sin 70 =
opposite hypotenuse
x 20
or
x = 20 sin 70
= 18.8 cm
Worked Example 2
Find the length of the side marked x in the triangle.
x
Solution
In this triangle,
40
8m
gives
tan 40 =
x 8
or
x = 8 tan 40
= 6.7 metres
14
34.4
Worked Example 3
Find the length marked x in the triangle.
Solution
In this triangle, tan 42 = Multiplying by x gives
10 m
opposite 10 = adjacent x
42 x
x tan 42 = 10
and dividing by tan 42 gives
x
10 tan 42
10 0.9004
= 11.1 metres
Worked Example 4
Find the length of the hypotenuse, marked x, in the triangle.
10 cm x 28
Solution
In this triangle,
hypotenuse = x opposite = 10 cm
gives
sin 28 =
10 x
x sin 28 = 10 ,
then dividing both sides by sin 28 gives
x= 10 sin 28
= 21.3 cm
CIMT and e-Learning Jamaica 15
34.4
Worked Example 5
E 8m H
40 I 5m G
The diagram above, not drawn to scale, represents one face of the roof of a house in the shape of a parallelogram EFGH. Angle EFI = 40 and EF = 8 m. EI represents a rafter placed perpendicular to FG such that IG = 5 m. Calculate, giving your answers to 3 significant figures, (a) (b) (c) the length of FI the length of EI the area of EFGH. (CXC)
Solution
(a) (b) (c) FI = 8 cos 40 6.13 m EI = 8 sin 40 5.14 m Area of EFGH = FG EI
= (5 + 6.13) 5.14
= 11.13 5.14
57.2 m 2
Exercises
1. Find the length of the side marked x in each triangle. (a) (b) (c)
x
8 cm
x
50 x
12 cm
25 11 cm
80
16
34.4
(d)
15 cm 22
(e)
30 x
(f)
18 cm
24 cm 70
(g)
x
20 cm 28
(h)
45 26 cm x
(i)
9m 60 x
(j)
10.4 m 50 x
(k)
16.7 m
38
(l)
x
45
x
20 m
(m)
48 x
(n)
(o)
18
8.2 m x 25
15.2 m
12.8 m
2.
4m
68
(a) (b)
How far is the top of the ladder from the ground? How far is the bottom of the ladder from the wall?
17
34.4
3.
A guy rope is attached to a tent peg and the top of a tent pole so that the angle between the peg and the bottom of the pole is 60 . (a) (b) (c) Find the height of the pole if the peg is 1 metre from the bottom of the pole. If the length of the rope is 1.4 metres, find the height of the pole. Find the distance of the peg from the base of the pole if the length of the guy rope is 2 metres.
60 Tent
4.
A child is on a swing in a park. The highest position that she reaches is as shown. Find the height of the swing seat above the ground in this position.
3m
15 3.5 m
5.
A laser beam shines on the side of a building. The side of the building is 500 metres from the source of the beam, which is at an angle of 16 above the horizontal. Find the height of the point where the beam hits the building.
6.
A ship sails 400 km on a bearing of 075 . (a) (b) How far east has the ship sailed? How far north has the ship sailed?
7.
An aeroplane flies 120 km on a bearing of 210 . (a) (b) How far south has the aeroplane flown? How far west has the aeroplane flown?
8.
A kite has a string of length 60 metres. On a windy day all the string is let out and makes an angle of between 20 and 36 with the ground. Find the minimum and maximum heights of the kite.
9.
(b)
x
(c)
18 cm
42 10 cm
70
18
34.4
(d)
x 45
(e)
22 m x
(f)
12 m
7m
55
18
(g)
17
(h)
26 cm
(i)
x 50
1.8 m
58
4 cm
10.
The diagram shows a slide in a playpark. (a) (b) Find the height of the top of the slide. Find the length of the slide.
2m Steps 70 40 Slide
11.
A snooker ball rests against the side cushion of a snooker table. It is hit so that it moves at 40 to the side of the table. How far does the ball travel before it hits the cushion on the other side of the table?
40 80 cm
12.
(a)
Find the length of the dotted line and the area of this triangle.
5 cm 50 12 cm
(b)
Find the height of this triangle and then find a formula for its area in terms of a and .
19
34.4
13.
A wire 18 metres long runs from the top of a pole to the ground, as shown in the diagram. The wire makes an angle of 35 with the ground. Calculate the height of the pole. Give your answer to a reasonable degree of accuracy.
35
18 m
14.
In the figure shown, calculate (a) (b) the length of BD. the length of BC.
A 48 D 4 cm
36
Worked Example 1
Find the angle marked in the triangle shown.
Solution
In this triangle, hypotenuse = 20 cm opposite = 14 cm
14 cm
20 cm
Using gives
sin =
opposite hypotenuse
sin =
14 20
= 0.7
So
= sin 1 (0.7)
(to 1 d.p.)
and using the SHIFT and SIN buttons on a calculator gives = 44.4
20
34.5
Worked Example 2
Find the angle marked in the triangle shown.
Solution
In this triangle, opposite = 25 cm adjacent = 4 cm
25 cm
Using gives
tan =
tan =
opposite adjacent
4 cm
25 4 = 6.25
So
= tan 1 (6.25)
(to 1 d.p.)
and using the SHIFT and TAN buttons on a calculator gives = 80.9
Worked Example 3
Q x 20 cm
30 S
9 cm
The diagram above shows triangle PQR, not drawn to scale. PQ = 20 cm , QPR = 30 , QS is perpendicular to PR, SR = 9 cm , and SQR = x . Calculate (a) (b) the length of QS the size of angle x to the nearest degree.
Solution
(a) QS = 20 sin 30
= 10 cm
21
34.5
(b)
tan x =
9 10
= 0.9
x = tan 1 (0.9) and using the SHIFT and TAN buttons on a calculator gives
Exercises
1. Find the angle of: (a) (b) (c)
8m
10 m 6 cm
20 cm
2 cm
5 cm
(d)
14 cm
(e)
6.7 m
(f)
22 m
15 cm
8m
7m
(g)
5m 9m
(h)
48 mm
(i)
0.7 m
0.5 m
12 mm
(j)
0.9 cm
(k)
3.6 cm
12.2 m
(l)
16.5 m
8.7 m
15.1 m
22
34.5
2.
A ladder leans against a wall. The length of the ladder is 4 metres and the base is 2 metres from the wall. Find the angle between the ladder and the ground.
4m
2m
3.
As cars drive up a ramp at a multi-storey car park, they go up 2 metres. The length of the ramp is 10 metres. Find the angle between the ramp and the horizontal.
10 m
2m
4.
5m
2m
Find the angle between (a) the rope and the wall (b) the pole and the wall.
5.
The mast on a yacht is supported by a number of wire ropes. One, which has a length of 15 metres, goes from the top of the mast at a height of 10 metres, to the front of the boat. (a) (b) Find the angle between the wire rope and the mast. Find the distance between the base of the mast and the front of the boat.
6.
A soldier runs 500 metres east and then 600 metres north. If he had run directly from his starting point to his final position, what bearing should he have run on?
7.
A ship is 50 km south and 70 km west of the port that it is heading for. What bearing should it sail on to reach the port?
23
34.5
8.
The diagram shows a simple bridge, which is supported by four steel cables. (a) (b) Find the angles at and . Find the length of each cable.
6m
4m
4m
4m 4m
4m
9.
In the diagram below, not drawn to scale, EFGH is a rectangle. The point D on HG is such that ED = DG = 12 cm and GDF = 43 .
E F
H D
43 12 cm
Calculate correct to one decimal place (a) (b) (c) the length of GF the length of HD the size of the angle HDE. (CXC)
10.
ABC is a right angled triangle. AB is of length 4 metres and BC is of length 13 metres. (a) (b) Calculate the length of AC. Calculate the size of angle ABC.
A 4m B 13 m
24
34.5
11.
3m
7m
5m
(a) (b)
25