# Drag acceleration components depending on perpendicular velocity components

$$a_{xd} = k({v_x}^2+{v_y}^2)cos\beta$$ $$a_{yd} = k({v_x}^2+{v_y}^2)sin\beta$$

According to the above equations (relating to a projectile experiencing drag), the drag acceleration components are dependent on both the parallel AND the perpendicular velocity components. I'm struggling to understand how, say, the horizontal drag acceleration could depend on the vertical velocity.

EDIT:

For reference, the equations have been derived for a projectile as follows: $$a_d=\frac{1}{2m}C_d\rho A V^2$$ where $C_d$ is the drag coefficient, $\rho$ is the medium density, A is the projected area of the body and V is the velocity.

For the purpose of these calculations: $$k = \frac{1}{2m}C_d\rho A$$ Therefore the magnitude of the drag acceleration can be expressed as: $$|a_d| = k ({v_x}^2+ {v_y}^2)$$ If the angle of elevation beta is expressed as: $$\beta = \arctan{\frac{v_y}{v_x}}$$ Then the x and y components for the drag acceleration can be expressed as in the image above.

• Please define the symbols in your equations in your post and describe the situation for which the formulas are intended - otherwise, writing an answer to your question will result in quite a bit of guesswork ;) – Sanya Dec 23 '16 at 17:34
• Physics.SE is a MathJax-enabled site; so use that facility to write your equations. For a quick look, check this Meta Math.SE post. – user36790 Dec 23 '16 at 17:35
• Apologies, the derivations for the equations have been added. – user120568 Dec 23 '16 at 17:59

Well, with the expansion of your original question you have pretty much answered it yourself: You can see that the drag depends on the square of the absolute value of the velocity, which includes both velocity components. One should add, however, that the drag coefficient $C_d$ will also be a function of the angle of attack $\beta$, so the way the components of drag depend on the velocity components is more complex than what your equations suggest.
The reason for this complex dependence of the drag components on the velocity components is due to the way the velocity field of the flow around the projectile changes as a function of angle of attack. The velocity field ultimately appears as the solution of a certain set of nonlinear partial differential equations, and the way that this solution changes as a function of $\beta$ is highly non-trivial in general.