POGIL: Vector Components What we know about vectors so far makes them fun, but they are not

yet useful for answering the question How do things move? in two dimensions. Learning about vector components will bring us closer to this goal. Drawing Vector Components A vector component is a projection of a vector onto an axis of a coordinate system whose origin lies at the tail of the vector. The projection of a vector onto the x-axis is called the x-component. The projection of a vector onto the y-axis is called the y-component. The projections of several different vectors are shown below. y y-component vector y x-component y-component y-component x vector y

vector x-component

x-component

Notice that to find a vector's components we draw dashed lines from the tip of the vector down and perpendicular to each axis. The components are arrows drawn from the origin of the coordinate system to the intersection of the axes with the dashed lines. When drawing components, always check that both components start at the origin of the x- and y-axes. They should never extend farther than the projection of the vector onto each axis. 1. For each of the vectors below, draw the x- and y-components.

2. For each set of x- and y-components below, draw the corresponding vector.

Calculating Vector Components Once we draw the components of vectors, we will want to calculate their magnitudes. Suppose we want to calculate the components of the following velocity vector. Its x- and y-components have already been drawn, labeled as vx and vy. 20 m/s vy 35 vx

Let's move the y-component of the velocity to the right so that we form a right triangle between the vector and its two components.

20 m/s 35 vx vy

Now we can see how to find the magnitude of the x- and y-components. Since we have a right triangle with a known angle of 35 and a known hypotenuse of 20 m/s, we can calculate the components using trigonometry and everyone loves trigonometry! Use your trigonometric functions correctly and you will find that vx = +16.4 m/s and vy = +11.5 m/s. What do these numbers mean? They tell us that when an object moves with a velocity of 20 m/s, +35

that the object moves in both the +x and +y directions at rates of 16.4 m/s and 11.5 m/s, respectively. In other words, components tell us how much of the vector quantity is along each axis. A similar interpretation goes for displacement and acceleration vectors as well. As a second example, suppose we have the following acceleration vector. Its x- and y-components have already been drawn, labeled as ax and ay. y ax x 40 ay 8 m/s2 Again, let's move the y-component of the acceleration to the right so that we form a right triangle between the vector and its two components. ax 40 8 m/s
2

ay

If we use our trigonometric functions correctly, we find that the components of the acceleration 8 m/s 2, 40 are ax = 6.13 m/s2 and ay = 5.14 m/s2. The components tell us that when an object moves with an acceleration of 8 m/s2, 40 that the object accelerates in the +x and y directions at rates of 6.13 m/s2 and 5.14 m/s2, respectively. Notice that vector components are positive or negative depending on their direction along the corresponding axis. 3. For each vector below, draw and calculate its x- and y-components. 25 8 m/s2

10 m 30

80 14 m/s

43 m/s 50 18 m 10 m/s2 75

4. For each set of vector components below, draw the corresponding vector and calculate the magnitude and direction. 10 m/s 4m 4m 15 m/s

6 m/s2

25 m/s 2 m/s2 8 m/s2 8 m/s 13 m/s

16 m/s

5. Why is the magnitude of a vector always positive but the component of a vector can be either positive or negative?