Question 1010462: A boat takes 6 hours to go 30 miles upstream. It can go 72 miles downstream in the same time. Find the rate of the current and the rate of the boat in still water. (Hint: Because the current pushes the boat when it is going downstream, the rate of the boat downstream is the sum of the rate of the boat and the rate of the current. The current slows down the boat when it is going upstream, so the boat upstream is the difference of the rate of the boat and the rate of the current.)
Answer by fractalier(6550)   (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website! First of all, rate times time equals distance, or rt=d.
Next, let's call the rate of the boat in still water, r.
Then, let's call the rate of the current, c.
Going upstream we have
6(r - c) = 30 OR r - c = 5
Goind downstream we have
6(r + c) = 72 OR r + c = 12
We add the second set of equations and get
2r = 17
r = 8.5 mph
c is then 3.5 mph.
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