Using the slope concept, it is found that his friends are 20 feet apart.
What is a slope?
The slope is given by the vertical change divided by the horizontal change, and it's also the tangent of the angle of depression.
For the first friend, there is a vertical change of 34 feet and an angle of 34º, hence his position is:
[tex]\tan{34^\circ} = \frac{34}{x_1}[/tex]
[tex]x_1 = \frac{34}{\tan{34^\circ}}[/tex]
[tex]x_1 = 50.4[/tex]
For the second friend, there is a vertical change of 34 feet and an angle of 48º, hence his position is:
[tex]\tan{48^\circ} = \frac{34}{x_1}[/tex]
[tex]x_1 = \frac{34}{\tan{48^\circ}}[/tex]
[tex]x_2 = 30.6[/tex]
The difference is of:
50.4 - 30.6 = 19.8.
Rounding to the nearest foot, his friends are 20 feet apart.
More can be learned about the slope concept at https://brainly.com/question/18090623