Difference between revisions of "Vector Product"
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Vector Product
</dt>
A vector
whose magnitude is
equal to the product of the magnitudes of any two given vectors and the sine
of the angle between their positive directions. Also called cross product,
outer product. See scalar
product. For two vectors A and B, the vector product is often written A X
B (read A cross B), and defines a vector perpendicular to both A and B and so
directed that a right-hand rotation about A X B through an angle of not more
than 180 degrees carries A into B. The magnitude of A X B is equal to twice
the area of the triangle of which A and B are coterminous sides. IF the vector
product is zero, one of the vectors is zero or else the two are parallel. When
A and B are written in terms of their components along the X-, Y-, and Z-axes
of the rectangular Cartesian coordinates, i.e.,
B = b1i + b2j + b3k
then the vector product is the determinant
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References
This article is based on NASA's Dictionary of Technical Terms for Aerospace Use
