Its been a while since classes in trigonometry, I am calculating the height of rockets. I know that the formula is (distance from base) * Tangent(angle of rocket height). The trick is I will not be in a place where there will be a calculator. How can I do this manually?
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$\begingroup$ Do you have a rough estimate for the angle beforehand? For example is it going to be around 20 degrees, or around 70 degrees? $\endgroup$– Lee David Chung LinApr 28, 2018 at 15:02
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$\begingroup$ I'm going to guess about 30 degrees 50 feet away average $\endgroup$– Jim BApr 28, 2018 at 17:49
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1 Answer
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Similar triangles. Point a stick at the apogee of the rocket. The ratio of the height of the tip of the stick to the base distance along a level is the same as the ration of the height of the apogee to the level base distance of the apogee. Then it is a matter of a multiplication and a division which you should be able to do without a calculator.
It was a school exercise a long time ago to measure the heights of trees this way. It is also the basis of surveying.
Hope this helps.
Ced
