SOLUTION: A robin is flying south for the winter at a rate of 40 mph when it runs into a hurricane, blowing due west at 100 mph. What is the new velocity of the robin?
Algebra.Com
Question 157527: A robin is flying south for the winter at a rate of 40 mph when it runs into a hurricane, blowing due west at 100 mph. What is the new velocity of the robin?
Answer by Alan3354(69443) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
A robin is flying south for the winter at a rate of 40 mph when it runs into a hurricane, blowing due west at 100 mph. What is the new velocity of the robin?
-------------------
40 mph is one leg and 100 mph the 2nd leg of a right triangle. It's a right triangle since south (180 degrees) is perpendicular to west (270 degs).
Use Pythagoras to find the speed, v^2 = 40^2 + 100^2
v^2 = 11600
v = sqrt(11600) = 107.7 mph
-----------
The question was the "new velocity", not just speed. Speed is a scalar, velocity a vector that specifies speed and direction. Velocity is often said when the person means speed.
To find the ground track, note that the tangent of the angle between the heading of the robin (180 degs) and its 100 mph movement west (270 degs) is the arctan of 100/40, or arctan(2.5), for an angle of 68.2 degs.
So the robin is facing south, but moving over the ground at 180 + 68.2,
=~248 degrees, or WSW (west south west).
RELATED QUESTIONS
An airplane is flying at a velocity of 450 mph due east when it encounters a wind... (answered by Alan3354)
A pilot is flying at 168 mph. She wants her flight path to be 80°. A wind is blowing from (answered by Alan3354)
The rate of a small aircraft in calm air is 125 mph. If the wind is currently blowing... (answered by Theo)
The rate of a small aircraft in calm air is 125 mph. If the wind is currently blowing... (answered by Boreal,ikleyn)
A plane, that can fly an average of 400 mph in still air, makes frequent round trips from (answered by josmiceli,MathTherapy)
a pilot is flying with an airspeed of 185 mph at a heading of 212 degrees. the wind is... (answered by Alan3354)
Suppose Lynette ride her bicycle due south at a rate of 16 miles per hour.If the wind... (answered by CubeyThePenguin)
A plane is headed due south with an airspeed of 192 mph. A wind from a direction of is... (answered by stanbon)
A plane is heading due south with an airspeed of 288 mph. A wind from a direction of 58°... (answered by TimothyLamb)