Question

A fish swims 5 m/s at 30º South of West. What are its southern and western components? *

A. 2.9 m/s West; 4.33 m/s South
B. 2.5 m/s South; 4.33 m/s West
C. 2.5 m/s West; 4.33 m/s South
D. 0.5 m/s South; 0.87 m/s West

Answer 1

The southern and western components of the fish's velocity are calculated using trigonometric functions, resulting in B) 2.5 m/s South and 4.33 m/s West respectively.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question is asking to find the southern and western components of a fish swimming at 5 m/s at an angle of 30° South of West. To solve this, we can use trigonometric functions: cosine for the western component and sine for the southern component. The calculations would be:

• Western component = 5 m/s * cos(30°) = 5 m/s * (√3/2) ≈ 4.33 m/s West
• Southern component = 5 m/s * sin(30°) = 5 m/s * (1/2) = 2.5 m/s South

Therefore, the correct answer is B. 2.5 m/s South; 4.33 m/s West.