The green vector in the demo is a truly constant physical object (its Cartesian components are fixed), its representation in the polar coordinate system is constantly changing. The covariant derivative correctly captures this change, demonstrating that a derivative must account for both the change in a vector's components and the change in the basis vectors themselves. This distinction is fundamental in fields like general relativity, where coordinates are often not fixed. The visualization proves that if a vector field is constant in one coordinate system, its covariant derivative is not necessarily zero in another.

<aside> <img src="/icons/profile_gray.svg" alt="/icons/profile_gray.svg" width="40px" />

$\complement\cdots$Counselor

</aside>

how the partial and covariant derivatives behave in a polar coordinate system

how the partial and covariant derivatives behave in a polar coordinate system

🏗️Computational Analysis

<aside> 🏗️

$\gg$The Metric Tensor Covariant Derivatives and Tensor Densities

$\ggg$Mathematical Structures Underlying Physical Laws

</aside>