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2023 AMC 10A Problem 13

Problem 13 of 25IntermediateAlgebraGeometry

Abdul and Chiang are standing 4848 feet apart in a field. Bharat is standing in the same field as far from Abdul as possible so that the angle formed by his lines of sight to Abdul and Chiang measures 60.60^\circ. What is the square of the distance (in feet) between Abdul and Bharat?

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Solution

Let AA be Abdul, CC be Chiang with AC=48,AC = 48, and BB be Bharat with B=60.\angle B = 60^\circ. Every point seeing ACAC at 6060^\circ lies on one circular arc, so all valid BB sit on a circle where chord ACAC subtends 60.60^\circ. The law of sines gives its diameter, ACsin60=4832=323.\frac{AC}{\sin 60^\circ} = \frac{48}{\frac{\sqrt3}{2}} = 32\sqrt3. Now ABAB is a chord, and a chord is longest when it’s a diameter. So AB=323AB = 32\sqrt3 and AB2=10243=3072.AB^2 = 1024 \cdot 3 = 3072. Thus, C is the correct answer.

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Concepts: inscribed angle · law of sines · optimization

Problem text and solution from the LIVE past-contest archive. See also the AoPS wiki page for community solutions.