PROJECTILES

Introduction

Projectile Motion exists commonly in our everyday lives and is particularly evident in the

motion or flight of objects which are projected from a particular height. The key to working with

projectile motion is recognising, that when an object with mass is flying through the air, its

motion is a combination of vertical and horizontal movements. Although the horizontal velocity

of the object remains constant throughout the flight, it’s vertical velocity accelerates or

decelerates due to gravity.

Key Words: Projectile, Vertical Component, Horizontal Component, Resultant velocity

Objectives

You are expected to know:

 Define Projectile Motion

 Predict how varying initial conditions effect a projectile path (various objects, angles,

initial speed, mass, diameter, initial height, with and without air resistance).

 Use reasoning to explain the predictions.

 Explain common projectile motion terms in their own words. (launch angle, initial speed,

initial height, range, final height, time).

 Describe why using the simulation is a good method for studying projectiles.

 Understand and utilise the relationship between horizontal, vertical, and total velocity.

 Find the total time of flight of an object.

 Calculate the maximum height of a given flight.

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  Ascertain the range of a projected object.

Projectiles

A projectile is any object that is thrown by any means. There are three situations we will look

at:

 Throwing an object vertically into the air;

 Throwing an object horizontally from a height;

 Throwing an object at an angle.

The key concepts you must understand:

 The horizontal movement is totally independent of the vertical movement.

That means that they do NOT affect each other.

 The two movements are vector quantities, so they have a direction.

 The velocities are at 90o to each other.

 There is a resultant velocity from the two independent velocities.

 We can analyse the vertical movement using the equations of motion.

Throwing an Object Vertically Into the Air

Consider a basketball player throwing a ball in the air. What goes up must come down.

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The ball has a downward force acting on it because of gravity. Therefore it will slow down at a

rate of 10 m/s2. So we can say that the acceleration is -10 m/s2. When we tackle problems like

this, we use the equations of motion. We have to make sure that we get the signs right. We will

make upwards positive and downwards negative.

Equations of Motion

We can use the Equations of Motion to calculate the speed of an object under different

circumstances. These are quantities are involved in linear motion, movement in a straight line:

Quantity Physics Code Units

Distance s m
Speed at the start u m/s
Speed at the end v m/s
Acceleration a m/s2
Time t s

1. Speed at finish = speed at start + change in speed

change in speed = acceleration × time.

Speed at end = speed at start + (acceleration × time)

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2.

3. Distance = average speed × time

4.

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Question 1 The girl throws the ball at an upward velocity of 15 m/s. How high

will it go?

Answer :

The girl throws the ball at an upward velocity of 15 m/s. How high

will it go?

Use v2 = u2 + 2as

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 Upwards is positive, downwards negative.

0 = 152 m2/s2 + 2 x -10 m/s2 x s

-20 x s = -225 m2/s2

s = 225 ÷ 20 = 11.25 m
How long will it take the ball to reach its maximum height?

Answer 2_3_2

How long will it take the ball to reach its maximum height?

Use v = u + at
Question 2
Upwards is positive, downwards negative.

0 = 15 m/s + -10 m/s2 x t

-15 m/s = -10 m/s2 x t

t = 15 ÷ 10 = 1.5 s

We can represent these motions graphically. It is important that you understand these graphs.

A displacement time graph looks like this:

The graph is a parabola because the ball is accelerating downwards. When it reaches the top, its

velocity is 0, but its acceleration is still (-)10 m/s2.

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The velocity time graph looks like this:

This graph shows how the velocity not only changes, but its sign changes as well. This tells us that the

direction changes as well. This stands to reason; if going up is positive, going down must be negative.

Note that the gradient is constant, i.e. the acceleration is constant.

Question 3 What would the speed time graph look like?

Answer:

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 The graph looks like this because speed is the just the value. It does

not take into account the direction

The acceleration time graph looks like this.

It shows us that the acceleration is constant at -10 m/s2. The minus sign tells us that the

acceleration is towards the ground.

Throwing an object horizontally from a height

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If we throw an object horizontally, there are two important things to consider:

 The horizontal velocity remains constant (ignoring air resistance)

 The vertical velocity increases at a rate of (-)10 m/s2.

If we throw one object and drop a second object at the same time, we see this:

The second object, thrown horizontally, will hit the ground at the same time as the object that is

simply dropped.

Although the drawing is not to scale, you can see how the horizontal velocity remains constant,

while there is acceleration downwards.

Look at the diagram below. A pallet is dropped from a helicopter to the ground. We will ignore

the air resistance.

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The path taken is NOT a straight line, because the velocity downwards is increasing at a constant

rate of 10 m/s2. It is a parabola. There are two components in this problem:

 The horizontal velocity which remains constant.

 The vertical velocity which changes, as the object is accelerating towards the ground. We

use an equation of motion to analyse the motion.

The key point to remember is that the horizontal and the vertical motions are independent.

A common bear-trap is to put the horizontal velocity into the vertical equation of motion.

What is the horizontal velocity?

Answer :

The velocity remains a constant 40 m/s (from left to right)

Answer:

Question 4 Use v2 = u2 + 2as

v2 = 0 + 2 x 10 m/s2 x 100 m = 2000 m2/s2

v = 44.7 m/s

Confess!

Did you put 40 m/s into the u term?

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 Can you show that the vertical velocity is 44.7 m/s towards the

ground. Note that the horizontal velocity is ignored.

Answer 2_3_5

Use v2 = u2 + 2as
Question 5
v2 = 0 + 2 x 10 m/s2 x 100 m = 2000 m2/s2

v = 44.7 m/s

Confess!

Did you put 40 m/s into the u term?

What is the resultant velocity of the pallet just before it hits the

ground?

Answer:
Question 6
Use Pythagoras

Resultant2 = 402 + 44.72 = 1600 + 2000 = 3600 m2/s2

Resultant velocity = 60 m/s

Throwing an object at an angle

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Archery is a sport in which the participants subconsciously do calculations involving movement

in two directions. Again the vertical and horizontal movement are independent.

Let us analyse the motion from the moment an arrow is released to the moment it hits the target.

We want to find the range. For simplicity we will assume that the target is at the same height as

the release point. We will also ignore air resistance. We will not worry about the signs.

1. On release, the arrow leaves at a velocity v m/s and angle . The horizontal velocity is v cos

ϴ m/s. The horizontal velocity remains constant at v cos  metres per second.

2. The vertical velocity is v sin ϴ metres per second initially.

3. To work out the time we need to use an equation of motion that has initial velocity,

acceleration, and time.

v = u + at will fit the bill.

0 = v sin  + at

v sin  = at

Therefore t = v sin ϴ
a

4. To get the range we need to multiply the horizontal velocity by the time taken in the air.

Therefore:

range = v cos ϴ x 2t

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It is 2t because it takes t seconds for the arrow to go up to its maximum height and t seconds for

it to come down again.

Worked example

A large firework rocket leaves a launch tube at a velocity of 110 m/s at an angle of 30 degrees.

What is the range of the rocket?

1. Work out the horizontal velocity.

Horizontal velocity = v cos  = 110 m/s x cos 30 = 110 m/s x 0.866 = 95.3 m/s
2. Work out the initial vertical velocity:

The initial vertical velocity = v sin  = 110 sin 30 = 110 m/s x 0.5 = 55 m/s.
3. Now work out the time it takes to get to the maximum height:

0 = 55 m/s + -10 m/s2 x t (=> 0 - 55m/s = -10 t)

t = 55 m/s ÷ 10 m/s2 = 5.5 s

Therefore the total time in the air = 2 x 5.5 s = 11 s

4. Therefore the range = v cos  x 2t

= 11 s x 95.3 m/s = 1050 m.

In the AS exam, they will not be over officious with signs, but make sure you explain each step.

A javelin thrower throws a javelin at a velocity of 25 m/s at an angle of

40 degrees. What distance will he throw the javelin?

Answer 2_3_7

A javelin thrower throws a javelin at a velocity of 25 m/s at an angle of

Question 7
40 degrees. What distance will he throw the javelin?

1. Work out the horizontal velocity.

Horizontal velocity = v cos  = 25 m/s x cos 40 = 25 m/s x 0.766 =

19.2 m/s

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 2. Work out the initial vertical velocity:

The initial vertical velocity = v sin  = 25 sin 40 = 25 m/s x 0.643 =

16.1 m/s.
3. Now work out the time it takes to get to the maximum height:

0 = 16.1 m/s + -10 m/s2 x t (=> 0 - 16.1m/s = -10 t)

t = 16.1 m/s ÷ 10 m/s2 = 1.61 s

Therefore the total time in the air = 2 x 1.61 s = 3.22 s

4. Therefore the range = v cos  x 2t

= 3.22 s x 19.2 m/s = 62 m.

Summary

1. Speed at finish = speed at start + change in speed

change in speed = acceleration × time.

Speed at end = speed at start + (acceleration × time)

2.

3. Distance = average speed × time

4.

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 SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISES

Choose the correct answer for each question.

1. When a ball is thrown vertically in the air, it slows down as soon as it leaves your hands.

This is because:

A. there is air resistance on it;

B. The force of gravity is pulling it one side

C. the force of gravity is pulling it downwards;

D. the energy contained within the ball is being destroyed

2. When a ball is thrown vertically in the air, its acceleration during its upward flight is:

A. 10 m/s2 in the opposite direction to its velocity

B. Dependent on how far it has gone up

C. 10 m/s2 in the same direction to its velocity

D. Zero

3. At the top of its path, the acceleration of the ball is:

A. 10 m/s2 away from the ground

B. Dependent on how far it has gone up

C. 10 m/s2 towards the ground

D. Zero

4. At the top of its path, the velocity of the ball is:

A. 10 m/s away from the ground

B. Dependent on how far it has gone up

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 C. 10 m/s towards the ground

D. Zero

5. A cricketer throws a ball vertically in the air. It leaves his hands at a speed of 10 m/s.

It will reach a height of:

A. 5 m

B. 10 m

C. 15 m

E. 20 m

6. When an object is thrown horizontally, and we ignore air resistance, the path the

object takes is:

A. horizontal in a straight line

B. straight line at an angle;

C. an arc of a circle;

D. a parabola

7. The reason for the path taken by the object is this shape is because:

A. gravity acts vertically downward and the object accelerates

B. a gravitational pull is experienced only after the object has slowed down

C. gravity acts at 90 degrees to the direction of movement

D. gravity can be ignored

8. When the object hits the ground, we can work out its velocity from:

A. its horizontal velocity only

B. its vertical velocity only

C. a vector sum of both its horizontal and vertical velocities

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 D. adding up the values of the two velocities.

9. One object is dropped vertically, while a second object of twice the mass is thrown

forward. Which one of the following statements is true?

A. The first object will hit the floor after a time interval of 2t;

B. The two objects will hit the floor at the same time;

C. The second object will hit the floor after a time interval of 2t;

D. The second object will hit the floor with a velocity of 2v.

10. The maximum range of a projectile is obtained when it is fired at an angle to the

ground of:

A. 30 degrees

B. 45 degrees

C. 60 degrees

D. 75 degrees

Problem Solving:

1. One strategy in a snowball fight is to throw a snowball at a high angle over level

ground. While you opponent is watching the first one, you throw a second snowball at a

low angle timed to arrive before or at the same time as the first one. Assume both

snowballs are thrown with a speed of 25 m/s. The first is thrown at an angle of 70o with

respect to the horizontal.

(a) At what angle should the second snowball be thrown to arrive at the same point as the

first?

(b) How many seconds later should the second snowball be thrown after the first to

arrive at the same time?

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 2. An astronaut on a strange planet finds that she can jump a maximum horizontal distance

of 15 m if her initial speed is 3 m/s. What is the free-fall acceleration on the planet?

3. Two projectiles are thrown with the same magnitude of initial velocity, one at an angle of

θ' with respect to the level ground and the other at an angle 90o - θ'. Both projectiles will

strike the ground at the same distance from the projection point. Will both projectiles be

in the air for the same time interval?

4. A ball is projected horizontally from the top of a building. One second later, another ball

is projected horizontally from the same point, with the same velocity. At what point in

the motion will the balls be closest to each other? Will the first ball always be traveling

faster than the second ball? What will be the time difference between when the balls hit

the ground? Can the horizontal projection velocity of the second ball be changed, so that

the balls arrive at the ground at the same time?

ANSWERS TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISES

1. C 3. C 5. A 7. A 9. B

2. A 4. D 6. D 8. C 10. B

Solution #1:

(a) The range of a projectile is R = (v02sin2θ0)/g. If v0 is constant, the range is a function of θ0.

The function sin2θ0 is symmetric about 2θ0 = 90o, or θ0 = 45o. It has the same value for θ0 = 45o

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+ θ' as it has for θ0 = 45o - θ'. So a snowball thrown with θ0 = 70o = 45o + 25o has the same

range as a snowball thrown with θ0 = 45o - 25o = 20o. The second snowball should be thrown at

an angle of 20o.
(b) The time a snowball is in the air is 2tmax_height = 2vy0/g = (2v0sinθ0)/g. The flight time of the

first snowball is 2tmax_height = 2v0sin70o/g = 4.79 s. The flight time of the second snowball is

2tmax_height = 2v0sin20o/g = 1.74 s. The second snowball must be thrown 3.05 s after the first ball.

Solution #2:

To have maximum range for a given initial velocity, her launch angle must be θ0 = 45o. Her

range then is R = (v02sin2θ0)/g' = v02sin90o/g' = v02/g'. We have g' = v02/R = 0.6m/s2.

Solution #3:

When two projectiles are thrown with the same initial speed and they have the same range,

then the one thrown with the smaller launch angle with respect to the ground has the shorter

flight time.

Note: We can denote the two launch angles that have the same range as θ0 = 45o ± θ, or as θ0

= θ' and θ0 = 90o - θ'. The relationship between θ and θ' is θ + θ' = 45o.

Solution #4:

The horizontal distance between the balls will always be v0 times 1 s. After the second

ball has been launched at t = 1 s, the vertical distance (in meters) at time t (measured in

seconds) will be (1/2)g(t2 - (t - 1)2)= (4.9)(2t - 1). It increases with t, therefore during

flight the balls are closest to each other just after launch. (We do not know where they

were located before they were launched and what happens to them after they land.) The

horizontal component of velocity of both balls is constant. The vertical component of

velocity of ball 1 has magnitude gt and the vertical component of velocity of ball 2 has

magnitude g(t - 1). Since v2 = vx2+vy2, ball 1 will always be faster than ball 2. Ball 2 will

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 hit the ground 1 second after ball 1, independent of the horizontal velocity component.

The flight time of each ball is determined by the vertical distance it must fall, not by the

horizontal velocity component.

Reading Materials Used

 Practical and Exploration Physics: Modular Approach by Alicia Padua and Ricardo

Crisostomo

References:

 Conceptual PHYSICS 3rd Edition by Paul G. Hewitt

 College Physics 5th edition by Weber/Manning/White/Weygand

 University Physics 9th edition by Young and Freedman

 Contemporary College Physics 3rd edition by John/ Childers

 Exploring Science and Technology Physics by Diwa

 Practical and Exploration Physics: Modular Approach by Alicia Padua and Ricardo

Crisostomo

Relevant Resources and Websites

http://www.antonine-education.co.uk/Physics_AS/Module_2/Topic_3/topic_3.htm

http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/projectile-motion

http://electron9.phys.utk.edu/phys135d/modules/m3/Projectile%20motion.htm

http://library.thinkquest.org/10139/mid/proj1.html

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