Right Triangle Trigonometry: Introduction
Trigonometry is used to find distances that can’t be easily measured. For example, a surveyor may need to find the distance between two sides of a canyon. Since the distance they are measuring is so great, it is not feasible for them to take out a tape measure. Surveyors use right triangles to measure that distance without having to actually measure manually.
In this section we will begin by learning the six key trigonometric ratios that allow us to solve right triangle problems. We will then apply these ratios to solve for unknown sides.