➕ Vector Resultant & Components

📖 The Physics

A vector is a quantity with both size and direction — like a push or a velocity. You can't just add their numbers; the directions matter too. Think of two people pulling a boat with ropes at different angles: the boat follows neither rope, but a single combined pull called the resultant (red).

The reliable way to add them is the component method: break each vector into a horizontal (x) part and a vertical (y) part, add the x-parts together and the y-parts together, then rebuild one vector from those two totals. (This is the same result as the parallelogram law.)

Line the two vectors up (same angle) and R is just their sum. Point them opposite and they cancel. At 90° you get R = √(A² + B²).