Question

a vector is 253 m long and points in a 55.8 degree direction, what’s the y and x- component of the vector?

Answer 1

Well we know the hypotenuse of the triangle which is 253 m. And we know the angle of the triangle which is 55.8 degrees. So we want to find y. And to find y we use sin. And sin is a ratio, the ratio of the opposite leg, and hypotenuse. So sin(55.8) = y/253. Now we solve for y by multiplying both sides by 253. And finally we get 209.25 as the length of the y component.