SOLUTION: A commuter fly. A passenger train left Austin, Texas, at 12:00pm bound for Dallas, exactly 210 miles away; it traveled at a steady 50 miles per hour. At the same instant, a freight

Question 120616: A commuter fly. A passenger train left Austin, Texas, at 12:00pm bound for Dallas, exactly 210 miles away; it traveled at a steady 50 miles per hour. At the same instant, a freight train left Dallas headed for Austin on the same track, traveling at 20 miles per hour. At this same high noon, a fly leaped from the nose of the passenger train and flew along the track at 100 miles per hour. When th efly touched the nose of the oncoming freight train, she turned and flew back along the track at 100 miles perhour toward the passenger train. When she reached the nose of the passenger train, she instatly turned and flew back toward the freight train. She continued turning and flying until, you guessed it, she was squashed as the trains collided head on. How far had the fly flown before her untimely demise?
Answer by ankor@dixie-net.com(22740) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
A passenger train left Austin, Texas, at 12:00pm bound for Dallas, exactly 210 miles away; it traveled at a steady 50 miles per hour. At the same instant, a freight train left Dallas headed for Austin on the same track, traveling at 20 miles per hour. At this same high noon, a fly leaped from the nose of the passenger train and flew along the track at 100 miles per hour. When th efly touched the nose of the oncoming freight train, she turned and flew back along the track at 100 miles perhour toward the passenger train. When she reached the nose of the passenger train, she instatly turned and flew back toward the freight train. She continued turning and flying until, you guessed it, she was squashed as the trains collided head on. How far had the fly flown before her untimely demise?
:
Find the time that it takes for the two trains to meet. Then multiply that by 100 mph, that's how far the fly flew.
:
Let t = time required for the two trains to meet
:
We know that when this happens, they will have traveled a total 210 min
:
Write a distance equation Distance = Speed * time:
50t + 20t = 210
70t = 210
t = 210/70
t = 3 hrs
:
A fly flying at 100 mph for 3 hr travels 300 mi obviously
RELATED QUESTIONS
A train left Chicago and traveled towards Dallas. Five hours later another train left for (answered by ankor@dixie-net.com)

A passenger train traveling at a steady 60 mph leaves a station in Washington D.C. at... (answered by stanbon)

A train left Dhaka and traveled towards Chittagong. Five hours later another train also... (answered by stanbon)

A scale for a map states that 2 inches equals 25 miles. John measures the distance from... (answered by josmiceli)

A passenger train pulls away from the station and accelerated at a rate of 1m/s^2 for 1... (answered by ikleyn)

A train left a railroad station in N.Y. at 9:00 AM bound for Washington, D.C. traveling... (answered by stanbon)

A commuter plan travels 90 miles per hour faster than a passenger bus. The commuter plane (answered by nyc_function)

A train left Denver bound for Omaha at speed of 80 miles per hour, and at the same time... (answered by checkley77)

How far can a plane fly if it flies at a rate of 210 miles per hour for 4 hours? (answered by Edwin McCravy)