Question

Find the component of a velocity vector of an airplane that is traveling 150 mph at 45° below horizontal.

Answer 1

Answer:

none of the above

Step-by-step explanation:

All of the answer choices agree that the magnitude of the components is 150/√2 ≈ 106.1. The units of these components should be "mph", the same as the units of the magnitude of the given vector.

We only know the angle with respect to horizontal. We don't know whether that angle is measured with respect to the positive x-axis or the negative x-axis. Both of those are horizontal, and there is nothing in the problem statement that restricts the airplane to be traveling in one direction or the other.

Possible answers are ...

<106.1 mph, -106.1 mph> . . . . . . "horizontal" is +x direction

<-106.1 mph, -106.1 mph> . . . . . "horizontal" is -x direction

(The units are not degrees (°).)