5.

4 Particle motion in the neighbourhood of the Earth

m

F
M
O

Consider a two-particle system with M (Earth) >> m (particle, for example, a satellite). Then
we may regard the earth as fixed and the equation of motion of the particle is

GM m
mẍ = F = − x, r = kxk.
r3
GM GM
∴ ẍ = − x, kẍk = .
r3 r2
Particle motion very close to the Earth
Assume now that the earth is a sphere of radius R, and that the particle is sufficiently close to
the surface of the Earth so we may take kxk = R. So, to a good approximation,

GM m GM m
F = mẍ = − 3
x = − x̂,
R R2
x x
where x̂ = = , is the unit vector pointing ‘away’ from the centre of the earth. Introduce
kxk R
GM
the scalar g := 2 , and the vector g := − gx̂. Then, for a particle very close to the earth, the
R
acceleration is given by
ẍ = g (‘free fall’ acceleration).

Definition 5.2 The weight of a particle close to the surface of the earth is defined to be F =
mg.

Important Note: The above discussion regards the earth as a particle. This seems reasonable
for planetary motion (that is, when kxk >> R). However, Newton showed that even near the
surface, the gravitational attraction is the same as if all Earth’s mass were concentrated at its
centre, assuming the Earth has a spherically symmetric mass distribution.

6 Projectiles

In this section we will use the Newton’s second law (N2) to derive a vector ODE and then solve it
and analyse the solution, to solve projectile problems. We first analyse the motion of projectiles

58
in a non-resisting medium in §6.1, and then we consider the more realistic case of motion in a
resisting medium in §6.2.
g
v0
This is the general idea!

6.1 Motion in non-resisting medium - see Anton pp. 911 – 914

Consider the motion of a particle very close to the earth, subject to the earth’s gravitational
attraction and assuming no air resistance. Therefore, from (N2) and §5.4

mẍ = mg or ẍ = g. (6.1)

Thus

ẍ = g

We can easily solve (6.1) to give (see Sheet 6, Qu 9)

1
x(t) = x0 + v0 t + gt2 , (6.2)
2
where x0 = x(0), v0 = ẋ(0).

Example 1: Assume that at time t = 0, a particle (projectile) is launched from the surface of
the earth at an angle α and with speed v0 . Find the horizontal distance travelled and the path
of the particle in (x, y) coordinates (ie. the trajectory).
Solution: The solution follows a general strategy, applicable to most of the problems from now
on. Loosely, it consists of five steps, as follows.
Step 1: Diagram, origin, axes

y
g
v0

O α
x
X
earth

59
 Position vector of particle

x(t) = x(t) i + y(t) j.

Step 2 (Forces and N2) Only the gravity force, mg, where g = −gj.
N2 implies ODE (6.1).
Step 3: (Initial conditions, I.C.) Set, by having chosen the origin to coincide with the initial
position of the particle, x0 = 0. Also, from trigonometry,

1/2
ẋ(0) = v0 = v0 cos α i + v0 sin α j, , (check: speed kv0 k = v0 cos2 α + sin2 α = v0 ).

Step 4 (Solve ODE + I.C.)

The solution is given by (6.2).
Step 5 (Analyse the solution to answer the question)
For x(t) = x(t) i + y(t) j, from (6.2) we have, in components,

i component: x(t) = (v0 cos α)t, (6.3)

and,
1 2
j component: y(t) = (v0 sin α)t − gt . (6.4)
2
x
To eliminate t note that from (6.3), t = , so that,
v0 cos α

x 1 x2
y = v0 sin α − g 2 ,
v0 cos α 2 v0 cos2 α

and so
g
y = x tan α − x2 . (6.5)
2v02 cos2 α

This is a parabola in the (x, y) plane. To find the distance travelled, set y = 0. Thus, x = 0
(the starting point) or
2v02 sin α cos α v 2 sin 2α
x=X = = 0 .
g g

Definition 6.1 X, the horizontal distance travelled, is called the range.

v02 π
The maximum value for X is and this occurs when sin 2α = 1, that is, α = .
g 4
Example 2:
A particle is projected at an angle α to the horizontal from a point at ground level with a speed
v0 .

60
 y

y(d)

v0
h

d x
O

(i) Find the angle α which maximises the projectile’s height y when it is above a point on the
ground a horizontal distance d from the Origin.

(ii) Prove that the particle cannot clear a wall of height h at x = d if

n 1
o
v02 < g (d2 + h2 ) 2 + h .

Solution: From (6.5), at x = d,

gd2
y(d) = d tan α − .
2v02 cos2 α

dy
To find the maximum value for y(d), we seek α such that (d) = 0. Therefore
dα
dy gd2 sin α
= d sec2 α − 2 = 0.
dα v0 cos3 α

Thus,
gd2
 
2
sec α d − 2 tan α = 0,
v0
which gives
v02
tan α = .
gd
Therefore
1 2 v04
= tan α + 1 = + 1.
cos2 α g2 d2
So, from the expressions for y(d) and tan α etc,

v2 gd2 v04
 
ymax = d 0 − +1
gd 2v02 g2 d2

v02 v2 gd2
= − 0 − 2
g 2g 2v0

v02 gd2
= − .
2g 2v02

61
(ii) The particle can clear the wall if and only if ymax > h . Now,

ymax > h
v02 gd2
⇐⇒ − >h
2g 2v02
⇐⇒ v04 − g2 d2 > 2ghv02

⇐⇒ (v02 − gh)2 > g2 (d2 + h2 )

1
⇐⇒ v02 > gh + g(d2 + h2 ) 2
1
or v02 < gh − g(d2 + h2 ) 2

Now the term on the right-hand side of the last inequality is negative, so the inequality is never
satisfied. Therefore
1
ymax < h ⇐⇒ v02 < gh + g(d2 + h2 ) 2 .

2
(More examples: Sheet 9 Qns 1-3.)

6.2 Motion in a resisting medium

In reality, when particles move through the air a resistive force, f say, is exerted on the particle.
trajectory

mg

Experiments suggest that this force acts in a direction opposite to velocity, i.e.
v
f = −f (v) ,
v
where v = kvk, v = ẋ, and where f (v) is some positive function. For v not very large f (v) is
found to be
f (v) = µ v,

where µ > 0 is a physical constant. Thus

f = − µv = − µẋ, (6.6)

and N2 implies that mẍ = −µẋ + mg. Rearranging we obtain

ẍ + kẋ = g, k = µ/m, (6.7)

62
a second order linear vector ODE whose solution is given in Sheet 6, Question 10. With initial
conditions:
x(0) = x0 , ẋ(0) = v0 ,

we obtain  
g 1
v = ẋ = + v0 − g e−kt , (6.8)
k k
and
1  1  
x(t) = x0 + v0 1 − e−kt + g 2 e−kt − 1 + kt . (6.9)
k k
The “no resistance” case in §6.1 has solution:

1
x(t) = x0 + v0 t + gt2 . (6.10)
2

To help compare these we have the following.

Lemma For a fixed t:

1  kt2
(a) 1 − e−kt = t − + O(k2 ) → t as k → 0,
k 2
1   t2 t2
(b) 2 e−kt − 1 + kt = + O(k) → as k → 0.
k 2 2
k 2 t2 k 3 t3
Proof: Use (Taylor series) e−kt = 1 − kt + − . . . . 2.
2 3!
Thus, in the limit as k → 0, (6.9) tends to (6.10).
Example: Assume that at time t = 0, a particle is launched from the surface of the earth at
an angle α and speed v0 . Assuming air resistance describe the trajectory of the particle.
y

f
v0 g
α
x
O

Solution: The ODE (6.7) holds and has solution (6.9).

Set x0 = 0, v0 = v0 cos α i + v0 sin α j, g = −gj, and

x(t) = x(t)i + y(t)j.

63
Then, using (6.9), in components,

(1 − e−kt )
x(t) = v0 cos α (6.11)
k
(1 − e−kt ) g  
y(t) = v0 sin α − 2 e−kt − 1 + kt (6.12)
k k

(cf. (6.3),(6.4)). To find the trajectory in terms of y and x we eliminate t. From (6.11)

kx
1 − e−kt = ,
v0 cos α

and so  
kx
kt = − ln 1 − .
v0 cos α
Hence the trajectory is from (6.12)

  
g kx kx
y = x tan α + + ln 1 − . (6.13)
k2 v0 cos α v0 cos α
This can be compared this with the trajectory with no resistance (6.5):

gx2
y = x tan α − .
2v02 cos2 α

Implications:

v0 cos α
1) From (6.11), x< and
k
v0 cos α
x(t) −→ as t → ∞,
k

since e−kt −→ 0.
y

trajectory
v0
v0 cos α
k
O x

y(t)

−∞

2) From (6.12) y(t) −→ −∞, as t → ∞.

64
 1
3) From (6.8) v(t) −→ g as t −→ ∞. Hence the velocity tends to a constant, namely the
k
‘terminal’ velocity. (See diagram.)

Another example: Qn 4 Sheet 9.

Example (continued): (cf. Sheet 9 Qn 5) Let us continue the previous example but, in
addition, assume that there is a crosswind of velocity u and that air resistance is proportional
to the relative velocity of particle with respect to the wind.

(a) Derive the vector ODE that describes the motion of the particle.

(b) Solve this ODE to find x.

(c) Prove that motion is in a plane.

Solution

(a)

Relative velocity of projectile with respect to wind = ẋ − u

∴ Air resistance = − µ(ẋ − u)

∴ (N2) mẍ = mg − µ(ẋ − u)

∴ mẍ + µẋ = mg + µu
 µ
∴ ẍ + kẋ = g + ku k= ,
m

which the same equation as (6.7) with constant vector g on the right hand side replaced
by (constant vector) g + ku. Hence (6.8) and (6.9) also hold, with g replaced by g + ku:

(b)

from (6.8) x(0) = x0 ẋ(0) = v0

 
g + ku 1
ẋ = + v0 − (g + ku) e−kt
k k
g h g i
= + u + v0 − + u e−kt
k k

1 1
from (6.9) x = x0 + v0 (1 − e−kt ) + (g + ku) 2 (e−kt − 1 + kt).
k k

(c) [Recall that the equation of a plane through x0 is x = x0 + λa + µb]. So motion is in the
plane containing x0 and spanned by v0 and (g + ku).

65
Remark (cf. Sheet 9 Qn 1)
In problems with slopes, for example, when a particle is projected at an angle α to the slope
with the slope inclined at an angle β to the horizontal, then it is often best to line up i with the
slope as follows:
j AKA *

i
A 
A
v0
 








α 

 β horizontal



7 On solving a class of nonlinear odes

In the remaining sections we shall meet some nonlinear scalar odes of the form

d2 y
= f (y), (7.1)
dt2
dy
with f (y) a nonlinear function of y. The main point to note is that there is no term and f
dt
doesn’t depend on t. We shall show that a simple substitution allows us to integrate the ode
once.
Set
dy
z=
dt
and so
d2 y d dz dy dz
= (z) = =z .
dt2 dt dy dt dy
Thus we can replace (7.1) by
dz
z = f (y) (7.2)
dy
which is the separable equation zdz = f (y)dy (see Anton, pp. 590-591). This is integrated to
give
1 2
Z
z = f (y)dy + C, (7.3)
2
dy
where C is a constant of integration, to be found using an initial condition. Using z = dt we
get back to an equation of the form
 2
1 dy
Z
= f (y)dy + C. (7.4)
2 dt

66