Question

How far is it from the lighthouse to the ship horizontally if the lighthouse is 20 ft tall and shines a beam to the ship 25 ft long?

Also, which statement is correct?

(1 point)
Responses

x = 15 ft; the distance from the lighthouse to the ship must be the shortest distance
x = 15 ft; the distance from the lighthouse to the ship must be the shortest distance

x = 225 feet; the distance from the lighthouse to the ship must be the longest distance
x = 225 feet; the distance from the lighthouse to the ship must be the longest distance

x = 15 ft; the distance from the top of the lighthouse to the ship must be the longest distance
x = 15 ft; the distance from the top of the lighthouse to the ship must be the longest distance

x = approximately 24.5 yards; from the top of the lighthouse to the boat must be the shortest distance

Answer 1

[AI-generated answer — Bot GPT 3.5]

To find the horizontal distance from the lighthouse to the ship, we can use the Pythagorean theorem:

x^2 = 25^2 - 20^2
x^2 = 625 - 400
x^2 = 225
x = 15 ft

Therefore, the correct statement is:
x = 15 ft; the distance from the top of the lighthouse to the ship must be the longest distance