Question

A small aircraft starts its descent from an altitude of h = 4 3 mile, 4 miles west of the runway (see figure). (a) Find the cubic f(x) = ax3 + bx2 + cx + d on the interval [−4, 0] that describes a smooth glide path for the landing. f(x) = (b) The function in part (a) models the glide path of the plane. When would the plane be descending at the greatest rate? x =

Answer 1