Vector

Figure 1. An example of what a vector can look like in a cartesian coordinate system.

A vector is a mathematical tool used to represent physical quantities that require both a magnitude and direction to describe. Such physical quantities include things like positions, velocities and forces.

For example, the velocity of a baseball is a vector quantity: the moving baseball has both a magnitude and a direction.

1. The magnitude of its velocity is known as the speed, so one would say the baseball's speed is 100 km/hr.
2. The direction can be described in many ways (once a coordinate system is chosen): the baseball could be traveling "to the left", "to the west", "in the x-direction", etc.

Figure 1 shows an example of a magnetic field vector on a cartesian plane.

To learn more about vectors, visit HyperPhysics.

For Further Reading

• Velocity
• Force
• Scalar
• Unit vector
• Or explore a random page