I can solve for missing angles in right triangles by applying inverse trigonometric ratios.

Learning Target:

Warm-Up

A few review problems to get our brains in trig mode!

​We've been writing and solving equations using the trig ratios (sine, cosine, tangent) to determine missing side lengths of right triangles.

It turns out if you know the sin, cosine, or tangent ratio of an angle, you can use the inverse of the ratio (sin^-1, cos^-1, tan^-1) to find the measure of the angle.

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In other words, if we know two sides we can determine the measures of the acute angles of the right triangle.​

Let's walk through one

​We're trying to find the value of x. (Typically the Greek letter theta Θ is used as the variable to stand for an angle measure).

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From x the side labeled "15" is the opposite and the side labeled "24"​ is the hypotenuse.

​Back in the day we'd do 15 /24, get 0.625, then try to find that on a trig table.

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(Somewhere between 38°​ and 39°, right?)

Modern-day equivalent:

Use the inverse sine function on a calculator

​Remember: Check to make sure your calc is in DEGREE MODE!

Concept Check!

Let's see how you do with this and other related skills!