A right angle and a angle identify a 30-60-90 triangle. Its short leg, long leg, and hypotenuse have lengths , , and . Match the side you need to its place in the ratio, then scale from the side you know. Halving the hypotenuse gives the short leg, which might not be the side asked for.
Hints
- Hint 1
In a 30-60-90 triangle, the side across from is the short leg, and the hypotenuse is twice as long. Which side lies across from angle ?
- Hint 2
The requested side is not the short leg. The long leg is times the short leg. What short-leg length goes with the given hypotenuse?
Step-by-step
Use the 30-60-90 side ratio
Step 1Identify the side ratio
No Desmos needed. A special-triangle ratio gives the exact lengths. The right angle and angle identify a 30-60-90 triangle. The sides across from , , and are the short leg, long leg, and hypotenuse, with lengths , , and .
- Step 2
Locate the requested leg
Match each leg to the angle across from it. The angle at is across from , so , not , is the short leg. That makes the long leg: .
- Step 3
Match the given hypotenuse
lies across from the right angle at , so it's the hypotenuse. Its given length is , which fills the position in the ratio: .
- Step 4
Find the short-leg length
Divide both sides by to find : .
- Step 5
Find the length of AC
Substitute into the long-leg length : . So the length of is . Choice C.