How would you show that a vector is normal to a plane in 3D space?

There are 2 main methods for finding a normal vector.

  1. If you know two vectors that lie in the plane e.g. (a,b,c) and (d,e,f), we can find a normal vector by calculating the vector/cross product of (a,b,c) and (d,e,f). This works because the vector product produces a new vector perpendicular to both your starting vectors, so it must be at right angles to the plane.

  2. If on the other hand you know the Cartesian equation of a plane, which looks like (ax)+(by)+(cz)=0, then the vector (a,b,c) is a normal vector!

FK

Related Maths A Level answers

All answers ▸

Find the integral of (3x^2+4x^5-7)dx


x = t^3 + t, y = t^2 +1, find dy/dx


The curve C has the equation y = 1/2x^3 - 9x^3/2 + 8/x + 30, find dy/dx. Show that point P(4, -8) lies on C


Edexcel C3 June 2015 Q1: tan(x)=p, where p is a constant. Using standard trigonometric identities, find the following in terms of p. a) tan(2x). b) cos(x). c) cot(x-45).