Calculating Elephant Seal's Displacement - Kinematics Problem

[shawonna23]

In diving to a depth of 635 m, an elephant seal also moves 590 m due east of his starting point. What is the magnitude of the seal's displacement?


Would I just take the 590m and subtract if from 635m to get the answer?

Is the answer 45m?

 

[Tide]

Pythagoras

 

[Sirus]

Use vector addition for these types of problems. Find vectors for the two separate displacements and add them vectorally.

 

[HallsofIvy]

Yep, Pythagoras!

 

[shawonna23]

would I do this?

Take the Square root of 635^2 + 590^2 to get the answer?

 

[COCoNuT]

In diving to a depth of 635 m, an elephant seal also moves 590 m due east of his starting point. What is the magnitude of the seal's displacement?


Would I just take the 590m and subtract if from 635m to get the answer?

Is the answer 45m?

dont take my word for it(im not good at physics, lol), but this is how i think your suppose to do it:


x=590 (east)
y=-635 (south, cause it's diving and negative because it's south)

mag is just a^2+b^2=c^2
so... 590^2 + (-635)^2 = c^2

and direction is... arctan(y/x) = arctan (-635/590)

im trying to do as many physics problems as i can and reading over my notes agian this weekend(got a test this monday)

can anyone tell me if my work is correct?

 

[maverick280857]

That's okay but to be sure I'd follow Sirus's advice about vectors (read below).