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The Sine Ratio

Part of the Right-Triangle Trigonometry section of Coddy's Trigonometry journey. Lesson 4 of 46.

Two escalators at 30°, one 20 m long and one 40 m long, sharing the same angle

Two escalators both rise at 30°. One is 20 m long and the other is 40 m long. They have the same shape. The long one is twice as long, so it lifts you twice as high.

So for one angle, the height divided by the length is always the same number. In a triangle, opposite divided by hypotenuse is the sine: sin⁡(θ)=oppositehypotenuse\sin\left(\theta\right) = \frac{opposite}{hypotenuse}. Like the tangent, it depends only on the angle.

challenge icon

Challenge

This escalator is 46 m long and rises at 30°. How high, x, does it lift you? Choose the ratio that uses the length and the height.

Then press Check.

Try it yourself

Use the figure to find x

Use the figure to find x

All lessons in Right-Triangle Trigonometry