SOLUTION: The two legs of a right triangle have lengths of 15 inches and 8 inches. Find the measure of the smaller acute angle of the triangle.

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Question 264485: The two legs of a right triangle have lengths of 15 inches and 8 inches. Find the measure of the smaller acute angle of the triangle.
Answer by CharlesG2(834) About Me  (Show Source):
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The two legs of a right triangle have lengths of 15 inches and 8 inches. Find the measure of the smaller acute angle of the triangle.
leg A 15 inches, leg B 8 inches, find C hypotenuse
C^2 = A^2 + B^2 (Pythagorean theorem)
C^2 = 15^2 + 8^2
C^2 = 225 + 64 = 289
C = 17 inches
sine = opposite/hypotenuse, the smallest acute angle will be the one opposite to the shortest side
sine = 8/17 = 0.470588 approx. OR approx 28.072487 degrees
(take inverse sine to find how many degrees the angle is)
the smaller acute angle is approx 28 degrees