How Do You Calculate a Boat's Path Across a River with a Current?

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on calculating a boat's path across a river with a current, specifically addressing a scenario where a boat with a speed of 1.50 m/s in still water crosses a 500 m wide river with a current of 0.900 m/s. Key calculations include determining the boat's speed relative to the starting point, the time taken to reach the opposite bank, and the downstream distance traveled due to the current. The right triangle formed by the boat's path and the current is essential for solving these problems using vector addition.

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1. A boat has a speed of 1.50 ms-1 in still water. It is used to cross a river 500 m wide along which there is a strong current of speed 0.900 ms-1. The boat is directed straight towards the opposite bank but the water current carries it downstream. Calculate:
(A) the boat's speed relative to the starting point
(B) the time taken to reach the bank on the other side
(C) the distance the boat is carried downstream from the point of departure at one bank to the point of arrival on the opposite bank



2. Literally don't know where to start. I feel like I have been staring at problems from my lectures and don't know how to relate this to any of them.



3. I drew out a diagram and can see that it makes a right triangle, but it feels like I need more information and I don't know how to find it. Also, I can't figure out how to the speed of the boat to the speed of the current.
 
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