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3 Projectile Motion Notes PDF

The document summarizes projectile motion, which describes the path of an object through the air after being launched or dropped. It explains that a projectile has independent vertical and horizontal motions, with gravity only affecting its vertical motion. As a result, the horizontal motion is constant, while the vertical motion involves constant acceleration. Examples are provided to demonstrate calculating the time and maximum height of projectiles launched at an angle, as well as the effects of air resistance.

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Shyk Shakir
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242 views

3 Projectile Motion Notes PDF

The document summarizes projectile motion, which describes the path of an object through the air after being launched or dropped. It explains that a projectile has independent vertical and horizontal motions, with gravity only affecting its vertical motion. As a result, the horizontal motion is constant, while the vertical motion involves constant acceleration. Examples are provided to demonstrate calculating the time and maximum height of projectiles launched at an angle, as well as the effects of air resistance.

Uploaded by

Shyk Shakir
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Chapter 3 Motion in Two Dimensions

3.3: Projectile Motion

projectile An object shot through the air, such as a football, that has independent vertical and
horizontal motions and, after receiving an initial thrust, travels through the air only under the
force of gravity.
trajectory The path of a projectile through space.
motion diagram A series of images showing the positions of a moving object taken at regular
(equal) time intervals.

In today’s lesson you will:


• explain how the vertical and horizontal motions of a projectile are related
• identify the relationships between a projectile’s height, time in the air, initial velocity, and
horizontal distance traveled
Main Idea: A projectile’s horizontal motion is independent of its vertical motion.

Path of a Projectile
• An object shot through the air is called a projectile.
• If you ignore air resistance, after an initial force launches a projectile, the only force on it
as it moves through the air is gravity.
• Gravity causes the object to curve downward.
• Its path through space is called trajectory.

Independence of Motion in Two Dimensions


• The ball on the left was dropped with no initial velocity. The
ball on the right was given an initial horizontal velocity.
• Because the change in vertical position is the same for both,
their average vertical velocities during each interval are also
the same.
• A projectile launched horizontally has no initial velocity.
Therefore, its vertical motion is like that of an object
dropped from rest.

Horizontally Launched Projectiles


• The horizontal motion of a projectile does not affect its vertical motion
• The object does not accelerate horizontally because after the initial launch, there are not
horizontal forces acting on it.
• The object’s velocity increases as the force of gravity accelerates it downward.
• The combination of constant horizontal velocity and uniform vertical acceleration produces
a trajectory that has a parabolic shape.
Example : A Sliding Plate

You are preparing breakfast and slide a plate on the countertop. Unfortunately, you slide
it too fast and it flies off the end of the countertop. If the countertop is 1.05 m above the
floor and it leaves the top at 0.75 m/s, how long does it take to fall, and how far from the
end of the counter does it land?

Step 1: Analyze and Sketch the Problem

Step 2: Solve for the Unknown


*Please notice that we’ve chosen the
downward direction to be y+.

Known: Unknown

Step 3: Evaluate the answer


• Are the units correct?
• Do the signs make sense?
• Is the magnitude realistic?
Angled Launches
• When a projectile is launched at an
angle, the initial velocity has a vertical
component as well as a horizontal
component.
• At each point in the vertical direction,
the velocity of the object as it is moving
upward has the same magnitude as when
it is moving downward.

Angled Launches and Range


• The maximum height is the height of the
projectile when the vertical velocity is
zero and the projectile has only its
horizontal-velocity component.
• The range (R) is the horizontal
distance the projectile travels when
the initial and final heights are the
same.

Example: The Flight of a Ball

A ball is launched at 4.5 m/s at 66” above the horizontal. It starts and lands at the same distance
from the ground. What are the maximum height above its launch level and the flight time of the
ball?

Step One: Analyze and Sketch the Problem

Step Two: Identify the known and Unknown Variables

Known: Unknown:

Step Three: Evaluate the Answer


Are the magnitudes realistic?
Forces from Air
• The effect of forces due to air has been ignored so far, but air can significantly change the
motion of an object.
• Air applies a drag force that increases as the relative speed of the air increases.
• The air resistance also increases as the surface area of the object that faces the moving air
increases.
• The strength of the wind and its angle relative to the moving object can affect the motion of
a projectile.

Main Ideas

1. Velocity Two baseballs are pitched horizontally from the same height but at different speeds.
The faster ball crosses home plate within the strike zone, but the slower ball is below the
batter’s knees. Why does the faster ball not fall as far as the slower one?
2. Projectile Motion A tennis ball is thrown out a window 28 m above the ground at an initial
velocity of 15.0 m/s and 20.0° below the horizontal. How far does the ball move horizontally
before it hits the ground?
3.

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