Trigonometric Functions

The following functions are useful for working with angles and performing various trigonometric calculations.

degrees

Converts angle units from radians into degrees.


Syntax	degrees(Angle)
Arguments	Angle is the angle in radians that you want to convert.
Examples	degrees(PI) returns 180. degrees(PI/2) returns 90.

radians

Converts angle units from degrees into radians.


Syntax	radians(Angle)
Arguments	Angle is the angle in degrees that you want to convert.
Examples	radians(225) returns 3.927 (5*PI/4).

cos

Returns the cosine of a given angle.


Syntax	cos(Angle)
Arguments	Angle is the angle in radians of which you want the cosine.
Examples	cos(0) returns 1. cos(PI / 3) returns 0.5. cos(frame / 10) * 100 yields the following curve:

sin

Returns the sine of a given angle.


Syntax	sin(Angle)
Arguments	Angle is the angle in radians of which you want the sine.
Examples	sin(0) returns 0. sin(PI / 6) returns 0.5. sin(frame / 10) * 100 yields the following curve:

tan

Returns the tangent of a given angle.


Syntax	tan(Angle)
Arguments	Angle is the angle in radians of which you want the tangent.
Examples	tan(0) returns 0. tan(PI / 4) returns 1. tan(PI / 3) returns 1.7321. tan(frame / 10) * 50 yields the following curve:

acos

Returns the arccosine—the inverse function of the cosine—of a given number. The returned angle is given in radians within the range 0 to PI.


Syntax	acos(Number)
Arguments	Number is the cosine of the angle you want and must be between-1 and 1.
Examples	acos(0.5) returns 1.0472 (PI/3 radians). degrees(acos(0.5)) returns 60.

asin

Returns the arcsine—the inverse function of the sine—of a given number. The returned angle is given in radians within the range -PI/2 to PI/2.


Syntax	asin(Number)
Arguments	Number is the sine of the angle you want and must be between-1 and 1.
Examples	asin(0.5) returns 0.5236 (PI/6 radians). degrees(asin(0.5)) returns 30.

atan

Returns the arctangent—the inverse function of the tangent— of a given number. The returned angle is given in radians within the range -PI/2 to PI/2.


Syntax	atan(Number)
Arguments	Number is the tangent of the angle you want.
Examples	atan(1) returns 0.7854 (PI/4 radians). degrees(atan(1)) returns 45.

atan2

Returns the arctangent of y/x, using the signs of both arguments to determine the quadrant of the return value. The arctangent is the angle from the origin to the vector (x,y). The returned angle is given in radians within the range -PI to PI.


Syntax	atan2(x, y)
Arguments	x and y are the components of the vector to be used in the function.
Examples	atan2(1, 1) returns 0.7854 (PI/4 radians). atan2(-1, -1) returns -2.3562 (-3*PI/4 radians). atan2(1, 0) returns 1.5708 (PI/2 radians). degrees(atan2(1,1)) returns 45.