An Example of a Shadow

This photo was taken at solar noon on the vernal equinox in Williamsburg, Virginia USA. (What is its latitude? Use an atlas to determine its true latitude.)

Print out the picture and draw in the hypotenuse and appropriately label angles "a" and "b", and then measure them using a protractor. Which angle represents the latitude of Williamsburg, Virginia? What is your degree of error (How much error is there in your determination from teh photograph?). Isn't it amazing that such a crude set-up can yield a rather close approximation of the right answer?-!