A body which has three forces acting on it is in equilibrium. One force is 3N to the North, and another is 4N to the west. Find the magnitude and the direction of the third force. Show the vector diagram.
The sum of the forces=zero
3N+4W+ ? =0
?force= -3N-4W
magnitude= sqrt(9+16)
direction SE, draw the triangle, find the angle.
To find the magnitude and direction of the third force, we can use the concept of vector addition.
Step 1: Represent the given forces as vectors. We have a 3N force to the North and a 4N force to the West. Let's call the North direction as the positive y-axis and the West direction as the negative x-axis. So, the 3N force can be represented as a vector in the positive y-axis direction, and the 4N force can be represented as a vector in the negative x-axis direction.
Step 2: Draw a vector diagram. Draw a coordinate system with the x-axis (horizontal line) representing the West direction and the y-axis (vertical line) representing the North direction. On the diagram, draw a vector in the positive y-axis direction with a length of 3 units, and a vector in the negative x-axis direction with a length of 4 units. Label them accordingly.
Step 3: Find the resultant vector. To find the magnitude and direction of the third force, we need to find the resultant of the two given forces. This can be done by adding the two vectors algebraically. Start by drawing the vector from the tail of the first vector to the head of the second vector. The resultant vector is the vector drawn from the tail of the first vector to the head of the second vector.
Step 4: Measure the magnitude and direction of the resultant vector. Measure the length (magnitude) of the resultant vector using a ruler or scale. Use a protractor or compass to measure the angle (direction) that the resultant vector makes with the positive x-axis (West direction).
Step 5: Analyze the resultant vector. The magnitude of the resultant vector represents the magnitude of the third force, while the direction of the resultant vector represents the direction of the third force.
By following these steps, you should be able to determine the magnitude and direction of the third force.