The intercept occurs where the function crosses the axis.
x-intercept: x=6
y-intercept: y=20 Description: See solution.
Practice makes perfect
To find the x- and y-intercepts we have to identify the points where the line crosses the axes.
x-intercept
The x-intercept is the point where the graph crosses the x-axis, when y=0. From the graph, we can see that this occurs at (6,0).
The x-intercept is x=6. Since the graph measures height on the y-axis and seconds on the x-axis, the x-intercept tells us that after 6 seconds, the eagle is 0ft away from earth, which means it has landed.
y-intercept
The y-intercept is the point where the graph crosses the y-axis, when x=0. From the graph, we can see that this occurs at (0,20).
The y-intercept is y=20. The y-intercept can be interpreted as the time that the descent of the eagle began to be measured. The eagle was at 20ft high when it started to descent.
