A bullet of 400m/s travelling South is it a Vector or Scalar
A bullet of 400m/s travelling South is a Vector.
A bullet traveling at 400m/s south is a vector quantity.
A vector quantity has both magnitude (the size or quantity) and direction. In this case, the magnitude is 400m/s, which represents the speed, and the direction is south, indicating the direction of its motion. Therefore, since it has both magnitude and direction, the bullet's velocity is a vector quantity.
To determine whether the velocity of a bullet is a vector or scalar quantity, we need to understand the characteristics of each type.
A vector quantity has both magnitude and direction, while a scalar quantity only has magnitude without any specified direction.
In the case of the bullet's velocity, it is traveling south with a velocity of 400 m/s. Since the direction (south) is specified in addition to the magnitude (400 m/s), the velocity of the bullet is a vector quantity.
We can confirm this by analyzing the bullet's velocity components. Since it is traveling south, the velocity can be represented as (-400 m/s) in the y-direction (assuming upward is positive). The negative sign indicates the opposite direction (south) from the positive y-axis.
Remember, the velocity of the bullet is a vector because it possesses both magnitude (400 m/s) and direction (south).