If a plane travels 2.7 statute miles in 43 seconds, what is its ground speed in knots?

To determine the ground speed of the plane in knots, knowing that 1 knot is equivalent to 1 nautical mile per hour, we first need to convert the distance traveled from statute miles to nautical miles and the time from seconds to hours.

1. Convert statute miles to nautical miles:

The conversion factor is approximately 1 statute mile = 0.868976 nautical miles. Therefore, for 2.7 statute miles:

[

2.7 \text{ statute miles} \times 0.868976 = 2.345 \text{ nautical miles}

]

2. Convert seconds to hours:

There are 3600 seconds in an hour. Therefore, 43 seconds is:

[

\frac{43 \text{ seconds}}{3600} \approx 0.011944 \text{ hours}

]

3. Calculate ground speed in knots:

Ground speed in knots is calculated by dividing the distance in nautical miles by the time in hours:

[

\text{Ground Speed} = \frac{2.345 \text{ nautical miles}}{0.011944 \text{ hours}} \approx