2D Motion Unit 2 –Physics Study Guide - KEY

1. Vocabulary – Review the terms, be sure you can apply the definitions to physical
situations and be able to think of examples. Recall that the sheet will be collected
as a Quiz grade on the day of the test.

2. How does the vertical component (y direction) of a projectile’s velocity behave in

the absence of air resistance? (increase, decrease, stay the same) Why?
It will accelerate constantly because of the acceleration due to gravity. This acceleration acts in a
downward direction and will cause the Y component of the velocity to increase if they are in the
same direction and decrease if they are in opposite directions.
3. How does the horizontal component (x direction) of a projectile’s velocity behave
in the absence of air resistance? (increase, decrease, stay the same) Why?
Velocity in the x-direction of a projectile will not change because there is not force acting on the
projectile in the x-direction during its flight.
4. At what point in the trajectory does a horizontally launched projectile have the
least total speed? (draw a diagram) HERE

At this point there is only velocity in the x-direction,

none in the y-direction yet. Later on there will be velocity in the y
direction and the x-component will not have changed making the total velocity bigger.
5. At what point in the trajectory does a projectile launched at an upward angle
have the least total speed? (draw a diagram) HERE

At this point there is only velocity in the x-direction because the y

component is zero at the top of the arc.
6. Why does a horizontal projectile maintain its horizontal velocity?
A projectile maintains it horizontal (x) velocity because there is no force acting on it in the
horizontal (x) direction – in order to have an acceleration there must be some force acting on the
pbject (this is a teaser for the our unit on Forces, btw)
7. What factor remains the same with both the horizontal and vertical components
of projectile motion?
Vertical acceleration ALWAYS remains the same for a projectile in the absence of air resistance.
It is ALWAYS -9.8 m/s2 (we often use -10 for calculations)
8. The horizontal component of a projectile’s velocity is independent of what?
The horizontal component of a projectiles motion is not affected by earth’s gravity .

9. Describe a projectile’s motion. What shape is the trajectory and how would you
describe the motion using words like increase, decrease and stay the same?
The trajectory of a projectile is represented by some part of a parabola, depending on the exact
launch and landing situation. The motion of a projectile could be described as initially having both
an x and y component, the x component stays constant and the y component changes under the
effect of gravity. It will accelerate in the negative direction which will either increase or decrease
the speed of the projectile depending on what direction the velocity is in at that moment.
10. What is an example of a projectile?
A kicked ball, a shot bullet, a stone released from a slingshot, an arrow released from a bow
string..
11. What is not an example (a counter-example) of a projectile?
An RC helicopter, a plane, a balloon either leaking air or filled with a lighter gas
12. At what angle would you get maximum horizontal distance?(Think back to the
WebQuest)
A 45 degree angle will give you the maximum range because there is enough Vy to give you
plenty of airtime, and enough Vx to get you down range effectively.
13. Give an example of vectors with opposite direction and explain how to solve for
the resultant. (give an example and draw them)
Travel to the west, followed by travel to the east
One person traveling to the west, while someone else
Travels to the east – find the total distance between them
14. Give an example of vectors with the same direction and explain how to solve for
the resultant. (give an example and draw them)
A plane’s velocity to the east plus the boost in
velocity given to it by a tail wind also to the east
15. Give an example of vectors with perpendicular directions and explain how to
solve for the resultant.
Walking in the city and going three blocks north and two blocks east
The resultant (dashed) is c= a2+b2 where a and b are the two vectors
16. Draw a parabola and then label it
with the component vectors in x and y
for 5 points along the line –
take care to represent both direction
and magnitude.

17. Four tennis balls are thrown from the top of the KMHS stadium at the same time,
the 1st has a horizontal velocity of 2m/s, the 2nd has a horizontal velocity of 3m/s,
the 3rd has a horizontal velocity of 4 m/s and the 4th has a velocity of 5 m/s. Draw
a picture of their horizontal displacement. Do they hit the ground at the same
time? The faster ones will go further than
the slower ones, but if thrown all at
the same time they will land at the
same time because motion in x is
independent of motion in y and they
all travel the same distance in y.

18. Acceleration of gravity, known as g, exerts a pull on objects in which direction?

DOWN
19. What is the numerical value of g?
-9.81 m/s2 is the commonly used value, although it varies slightly from place to place on the earth.
We also use – 10 m/s2 to simplify calculations
20. At the instant a baseball is thrown horizontally over a level field, a bat held at the
same height is released and drops to the ground. If air resistance is neglected,
which strikes the ground first? Why?
Ball and Bat reach the ground at the same time because mass is not a factor in how fast an
object is accelerated toward the earth and motion in x is independent of motion in y.
21. How far will a dropped object fall in the 1 st second?
d= ½ a t2 so d= ½ (-10)12 = -5 m , the object will fall 5 meters

22. What is the acceleration of the vertical component of motion?

Acceleration of the vertical component is whatever acceleration applies in the vertical direction.
For objects that are falling or launched through the air the acceleration is only that due to gravity
a=9.81 m/s2.

23. A stone is kicked horizontally off a 100m tall bridge. It hits the water 50 m away
from the base of the bridge. At what initial speed was the stone kicked?

24. A helicopter moving at 80 m/s drops a package. It hits the ground 3.5 seconds
later. How far horizontally did it travel before hitting the ground? How high was
the helicopter when the package was released?

25. A bowling ball with an initial speed of 4 m/s rolls off a 1.5 m deck. How far from
the deck does it land?

26. A cannonball is launched horizontally from a tall cliff with an initial velocity of 50
m/s and lands 250 m away from the base of the cliff. How tall is the cliff?

27.Physics Classroom Review session: Vectors and Projectiles-numbers: 1 a-d,

2 a-f, 3 a-g, 5 a-h, 6 a-g, 7 a-i, 8 a-o, 9 a-e, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44,
and 45 (draw diagrams and use vectors when attempting to answer)