Can the magnitude of a vector be less than the magnitude of any of its components

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Physics

Maia Rosales

16 December, 03:46

Can the magnitude of a vector be less than the magnitude of any of its components

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Kevin Barnes · Answer 1

No, because the trig functions used to find components are never greater than 1. To break a vector into components, you are multiplying its magnitude by either the sine or the cosine of that magnitude. Neither sine nor cosine can be greater than 1.