Two poles of heights 6 m and 11 m stand on a plane ground. If the distance between the feet of the poles is 12 m, find the distance between their tops.

Given, Two poles of heights 6 m and 11 m stand on a plane ground.

And distance between the feet of the poles is 12 m.



Let AB and CD be the poles of height 6 m and 11 m.

Therefore, CP = 11 – 6 = 5m

From the figure, it can be observed that AP = 12 m

By Pythagoras theorem for \(\triangle\) APC, we get,
\(\Rightarrow AP^2 = PC^2 + AC^2\)
\(\Rightarrow(12m)^2 + (5m)^2 = (AC)^2\)
\(\Rightarrow AC^2 = (144+25) m^2 = 169 m^2\)
\(\Rightarrow \) AC = 13m

Therefore, the distance between their tops is 13 m.