Car a is 16 kilometers to the west of car b. at noon, car a begins driving east at a constant speed 4 kilometers/hour, and car b begins driving north at a constant speed of 3 kilometers/hour. (a) (5 points) let x be the distance that car a has traveled since noon, and let y be the distance that car b has traveled since noon. let z be the distance between the two cars. find an equation that relates x to x and y.

The distance traveled can be found by kinematics equations

Explanation:

The initial position of Car B is denoted as origin. Car A started at -16 km, and moving right. Car B started at origin and moving up. z is the magnitude of the vector with components x and y.

The relation can be found by pythagorean theorem.

For checking the solution, we can find the positions at t = 4h. Car A is at the origin, and Car B is 12 km north of origin. z = 12.

see earlier answer