Answer:
15.8 ft
Step-by-step explanation:
The inclined plane, the base of and the shelving unit form the shape of a right angled triangle.
The hypotenuse is the length of the inclined plane, h.
The base of the triangle is 15 ft.
The height of the triangle is 5 ft.
To find the hypotenuse, h, we have to use Pythagoras rule:
[tex]h^2 = a^2 + b^2[/tex]
where a = height of the triangle
b = base of the triangle
Therefore:
[tex]h^2 = 5^2 + 15^2\\\\h^2 = 25 + 225 = 250\\\\h = \sqrt{250}\\ \\h = 15.8 ft[/tex]
The inclined plane is 15.8 ft long.