Name: _________________________ Period: __________ Due Date: __________ A

AP Physics 1 Homework - Vertical Forces

1. A 600 N skydiver falling vertically downward through the air experiences two forces: the downward
force of weight and the upward force of air resistance. At a particular instant, the skydiver's acceleration
is 8 m/s2. What is the magnitude of the air resistance force on the skydiver at this instant? (Draw a
free-body diagram as part of your answer and show a Newton’s Second Law equation with letters only
before plugging in numbers).

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2. A skydiver falls vertically downward through the air. At some instant before the skydiver opens his
parachute, the force of air resistance on the skydiver is 40% of his weight. What is the acceleration of
the skydiver at this instant? (Draw a free-body diagram as part of your answer and show a Newton’s
Second Law equation with letters only before plugging in numbers).

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3.

A 10 kg block hangs from a spring scale in an elevator that is being tested for an amusement park ride.
The elevator's velocity is shown on the graph over the 20 seconds that the ride is active. Let up represent
the positive direction. Determine the reading on the spring scale at each of the following times. For each
one, write a Newton’s Second Law equation (with letters first) before plugging in numbers.

(a) Time = 2 sec (b) Time = 8 sec (c) Time = 12 sec (d) Time = 17 sec

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AP Physics 1 Homework - Vertical Forces A

4. An object of mass m experiences only two forces: an upward force of tension, and a downward force of
weight. Under the influence of these two forces, the object moves in a vertical line during an 18-second
interval. The object’s height above the ground h is shown below as a function of time t.

(a) Let W1, W3, W5, W7, W9, W11, W13, W15, and W17 be the weight forces acting on the object at times 1 s,
3 s, 5 s, 7 s, 9 s, 11 s, 13 s, 15 s, and 17 s. In the nine blanks below, rank these weight forces from
greatest to least. Put a “>” symbol between unequal quantities, and a “=” symbol between equal
quantities.

_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

Greatest Weight Least Weight

Explain briefly.

(b) Let T1, T3, T5, T7, T9, T11, T13, T15, and T17 be the tension forces acting on the object at times 1 s, 3 s, 5
s, 7 s, 9 s, 11 s, 13 s, 15 s, and 17 s. In the nine blanks below, rank these weight forces from greatest
to least. Note that “>” and “=” symbols are already filled in for you.

_____ = _____ > _____ = _____ = _____ = _____ = _____ > _____ = _____
Greatest Two Tensions Middle Five Tensions Least Two Tensions

Explain how each of the tensions landed in the “greatest”, “middle” or “lowest” categories.

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AP Physics 1 Homework - Vertical Forces A

5. An object of mass m experiences only two forces: an upward force of tension, and a downward force of
weight. Under the influence of these two forces, the object moves in a vertical line during an 18-second
interval. The object’s vertical upward speed v is shown below as a function of time t.

(a) Let W1, W3, W5, W7, W9, W11, W13, W15, and W17 be the weight forces acting on the object at times 1 s,
3 s, 5 s, 7 s, 9 s, 11 s, 13 s, 15 s, and 17 s. In the nine blanks below, rank these weight forces from
greatest to least. Put a “>” symbol between unequal quantities, and a “=” symbol between equal
quantities.

_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____

Greatest Weight Least Weight

Explain briefly.

(b) Let T1, T3, T5, T7, T9, T11, T13, T15, and T17 be the tension forces acting on the object at times 1 s, 3 s, 5
s, 7 s, 9 s, 11 s, 13 s, 15 s, and 17 s. In the nine blanks below, rank these weight forces from greatest
to least. Note that “>” and “=” symbols are already filled in for you.

_____ > _____ = _____ > _____ = _____ = _____ > _____ = _____ > _____
Greatest Tension Middle Three Tensions Least Tension

Explain how each of the tensions landed in the “greatest”, “middle” or “lowest” categories.

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AP Physics 1 Homework - Vertical Forces A

6.

A student is using a yo-yo to perform an experiment to determine whether the net force acting on an
object is equal to the object’s mass multiplied by its acceleration. The free end of the yo-yo’s string is
attached to a force sensor (not shown in the left diagram) so that the force sensor can measure the yo-yo
string’s tension, and the yo-yo is allowed to fall and unroll above a motion sensor (shown in the left
diagram). The student begins taking data at time t = 0, and supports the yo-yo so that the string is slack
from t = 0 to t = 1 s. The student then releases the yo-yo so that it falls and unrolls. Once the yo-yo
reaches the end of its string, the yo-yo spins at rest while hanging from its string. The data taken by the
motion sensor and force sensor are shown in the above graphs.

(a) What is the yo-yo’s mass? Explain how you found this quantity from the data.

(b) What is the yo-yo’s acceleration as it falls and unrolls? Explain how you took “given” information
from the data and what calculation you made.

(c) Is the “net force” (or vector sum of the forces) on the yo-yo as it falls equal to the yo-yo’s mass times
acceleration? To answer this question, you’ll need to calculate the net force (in newtons) separately
from calculating the mass times acceleration (also in newtons) and compare the two values.

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7. Points Given: (1) ___/5 (2) ___/5 (3) ___/10 (4) ___/10 (5) ___/10 (6) ___/10