SOLUTION: A boat can travel 48 miles upstream in 3 hours. Coming back downstream, the trip takes 2 hours over the same distance. What is the rate of the current?

Question 1002776: A boat can travel 48 miles upstream in 3 hours. Coming back downstream, the trip takes 2 hours over the same distance. What is the rate of the current?
Answer by fractalier(6550) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Call the rate in still water, r.
Call the rate of the current, c.
We have
3(r - c) = 48 or 3r - 3c = 48 or r - c = 16
2(r + c) = 48 or 2r + 2c = 48 or r + c = 24
Now add the last two equations and get
2r = 40
r = 20
Now, because r + c = 24,
c = 4 miles per hour.
RELATED QUESTIONS
A boat can travel 36 miles downstream in 2 hours. Coming back upstream,, the boat takes 3 (answered by josmiceli)

It takes 5 hours for a boat to travel 80 miles downstream. The boat can travel the same... (answered by ikleyn,greenestamps)

What is the speed of a boat and a current, if a boat travels 48 miles downstream in three (answered by Maths68)

A boat travels 48 miles in 2 hours with the current (downstream). Against the current... (answered by nyc_function)

A boat on a river travels 48 miles downstream in only 4 hours. It takes the same boat 7... (answered by Katiebug24)

A motorboat can go 48 miles downstream on a river in 1 hour. It takes 1.5 hours for this... (answered by ewatrrr)

A boat can travel 24 miles downstream in 2 hours. It can travel the same distance... (answered by solver91311)