Related Rates Problem (Calc 1)

niravana21
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Homework Statement


A plane flies horizontally at an altitude of 5 km and passes directly over a tracking telescope on the ground. When the angle of elevation is π/3, this angle is decreasing at a rate of π/6 rad/min. How fast is the plane traveling at that time?

The Attempt at a Solution


I can't seem to visualize this problem :(

Thanks!
 
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niravana21 said:

Homework Statement


A plane flies horizontally at an altitude of 5 km and passes directly over a tracking telescope on the ground. When the angle of elevation is π/3, this angle is decreasing at a rate of π/6 rad/min. How fast is the plane traveling at that time?

The Attempt at a Solution


I can't seem to visualize this problem :(

Thanks!

Draw a right triangle with the telescope at the Pi/3 angle and 5km as the vertical leg. You are looking for the rate of change of the horizontal leg of this triangle, so you need to write an equation relating it to the known angle and height.
 
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