Two towns are 420 miles apart. A car leaves the first town traveling toward the second town at 55 mph. At the same time, a second car leaves the other town and heads toward the first town at 65 mph. How long will it take for the two cars to meet?
thank you, i have trouble "translating" a word problem to an equation, but thanks!
To find the time it takes for the two cars to meet, we need to determine how long it will take for them to cover the total distance between the two towns.
Let's assume the first town is Town A and the second town is Town B. Since both cars are traveling towards each other, their combined speed is 55 mph + 65 mph = 120 mph.
Now, we can use the formula:
Time = Distance / Speed
The total distance between the two towns is given as 420 miles. Plugging this into the formula:
Time = 420 miles / 120 mph
Simplifying, we find:
Time = 3.5 hours
Therefore, it will take the two cars 3.5 hours to meet.
the distance traversed is 420miles
the combined velocity is 120
time=distance/velocity
If you don't visualize that, here is a more traditional approach.
the first car travels=55*t
the second car travels=60t
they both travel 420
distance=velocity*time
420=55t+65t=120t
or t=420/120