Question

Describe how acceleration can be divided into two tangential and normal components

Answer 1

Any vector can be resolved into two mutually perpendicular components. In a circular motion, it is convenient to resolve acceleration into two components - one along the direction of velocity (known as tangential acceleration) and another perpendicular to velocity (known as normal acceleration). This is done because in any circular motion, a normal acceleration is a must as it provides the centripetal acceleration for circular motion. Now, if the speed is changing, there will be a tangential acceleration too, otherwise not.