A bird flying horizontally due North suddenly changes its flight direction to due West, maintaining the same speed. The direction of the average acceleration of the bird during this turn is :

Step-by-step solution

Let the speed of the bird be v . Taking East as the positive x-axis ( i ) and North as the positive y-axis ( j ): Initial velocity, v _i = v j Final velocity, v _f = -v i The average acceleration is directed along the change in velocity ( v ): v = v _f - v _i = -v i - v j The vector -v i - v j has negative x and negative y components, which corresponds to the South-West direction. Therefore, the average acceleration is directed along South-West. Answer: South-West