Two unknowns in trigonometric calculation?

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SUMMARY

The discussion revolves around solving a trigonometric problem involving two boats departing from different harbors. The first boat travels at 20 km/h at a 60-degree angle for 3 hours, while the second boat departs 160 km east at 70 km/h. The user outlines various trigonometric equations, including the Law of Sines and the Law of Cosines, to find the angle needed for the second boat to meet the first. Ultimately, the user successfully determines the value of 'x' and subsequently calculates 'v' using the established relationships.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of trigonometric functions: sine, cosine, tangent
  • Familiarity with the Law of Sines and Law of Cosines
  • Knowledge of the Pythagorean theorem
  • Ability to solve equations involving multiple variables
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the application of the Law of Sines in navigation problems
  • Learn how to derive and solve equations involving trigonometric identities
  • Explore vector addition in the context of motion problems
  • Investigate advanced trigonometric problem-solving techniques
USEFUL FOR

Students studying trigonometry, maritime navigators, and anyone interested in solving real-world motion problems using trigonometric principles.

Ricaoma
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Ricaoma said:
Hah, nevermind, I found a way to find x and then I could just insert the value to get v, just like I thought! :biggrin:

Homework Statement


A boat leaves the harbor going 60 degrees north-east with the speed 20km/h. 3 hours later, another boat leaves a harbor 160km to the east with a speed of 70km/h. What course should the second boat have to meet the first?

Homework Equations


Not 100% sure what equations would be relevant, but those who've crossed my mind have been:

The definitions of sine, cosine, tangent
[tex]\sin A = \frac{opposite}{hypotenuse}[/tex]
[tex]\cos A = \frac{adjacent}{hypotenuse}[/tex]
[tex]\tan A = \frac{opposite}{adjacent}[/tex]

Law of sines
[tex]\frac{a}{\sin A} = \frac{b}{\sin B} = \frac{c}{\sin C}[/tex]

Law of cosines
[tex]c^2 = a^2 + b^2 - 2ab\cos C[/tex]

Pythagorean theorem
[tex]a^2 + b^2 = c^2[/tex]

Area
[tex]A = \frac{a*b*\sin C}{2}[/tex]

The Attempt at a Solution


My sketched figure is attached to this post.

Start-phase
I started out by sketching a triangle with the base 160, the left side being 20t (20*time in hours since the first boat left) and the right being 70t-210 (70*time in hours since the first boat left - 70*3 for the 3 hours between the starting time).

Splitting the triangle
I also drew a line in the middle to make two right-angled triangles. Knowing that the bottom-left angle was 60 degees and that the new angle was 90 degrees I subtracted those two values from 180 to get the top angle of the left right-angled triangle.
[tex]180-(60+90) = 30[/tex]

After that I used the definition of sine to calculate the length of the middle line, like this:
[tex]\sin60 = \frac{h}{20t}[/tex]
[tex]20t * \sin60 = \frac{h}{20t} * 20t[/tex]
[tex]20t * \sin60 = h[/tex]

I did the same thing to find out the base of the left triangle:
[tex]\sin30 = \frac{b}{20t}[/tex]
[tex]20t * \sin30 = \frac{b}{20t} * 20t[/tex]
[tex]20t * \sin30 = b[/tex]

With this knowledge I know that the base of the right-side triangle's base is
[tex]160 = 20t*sin(30) + b<sub>2</sub>[/tex]
[tex]160 - 20t * \sin30[/tex]

The problem
I've tried all the things I've come up with so far, and most of them gives the same result. What I have to do is to get t out of any of the equations and then use that value to get rid of the t in all the equations. However, I have not yet been able to find an equation where this is an easy/possible task with my current trigonometric knowledge, which is pretty limited to the relevant equations listed above. Although, keep in mind that I may simply have missed an oppertunity to simplify an equation of overlooked some way of solving this, so the answer may still be in something that I think I've tried.

Some things I've tried:

Sine
[tex]\sin V = \frac{20t*\sin60}{70t-210}[/tex]

Cosine
[tex]\cos V = \frac{160-20t*\sin30}{70t-210}[/tex]

Law of Sine
Same result as my Sine-based approach
[tex]\frac{\sin90}{70t-210} = \frac{\sin V}{20t*\sin60}[/tex]
[tex]\sin V = \frac{20t*\sin 60}{70t-210}[/tex]

Law of Cossine
[tex](20t)^2 = (70t-210)^2 + 160^2 - 2*160*(70t-210)*\cos V[/tex]
[tex]\cos V = \frac{225t^2 - 1470t + 3485}{1120t - 3360}[/tex]

Equation system based on area
Same result as my Sine-based approach
[tex]A = \frac{a*b*\sin V}{2}[/tex]
[tex]A = \frac{a*h}{2}[/tex]
[tex]\frac{a*b*\sin V}{2} = \frac{a*h}{2}[/tex]
[tex]a*b*\sin V = a*h[/tex]
[tex]b*\sin V = h[/tex]
[tex]\sin V = \frac{h}{b}[/tex]
[tex]\sin V = \frac{20t*\sin60}{70t-210}[/tex]

Equation system based on Cosine and Law of Cosine
Don't know how to solve a third-degree equation like this
[tex]\cos V = \frac{160-20t*\sin30}{70t-210}[/tex]
[tex]\cos V = \frac{225t^2 - 1470t + 3485}{1120t - 3360}[/tex]
[tex]\frac{160-20t*\sin30}{70t-210} = \frac{225t^2 - 1470t + 3485}{1120t - 3360}[/tex]
[tex]315t^3 - 2769t^2 + 6797t - 3885 = 0[/tex]I'm really out of ideas now, so any ideas or thoughts are very much appreciated.
 

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Hah, nevermind, I found a way to find x and then I could just insert the value to get v, just like I thought! :biggrin:
 

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