Hi~ Thank you for your help~
Imagine you are on an island and you have two coconuts. The coconuts are launched with the same initial velocity. The trajectory of coconutA is such that coconutA goes very high, but falls not much farther from the spot it was launched. The trajectory of coconutB is such that coconutB goes not as high as coconutA, but falls much farther from the spot it was launched. Which coconuts hits the ground first?
Apparently the answer is supposed to be coconutB, but could you explain why, because I do not understand why...
Thank you very much
Coconut A goes higher, and takes longer to come down. Since A lands close to the launch point, it must have been fired nearly straight up.
Cocout B comes down first
So A is more slowed down on its ascent than B, (but then wouldn't A be more sped up on its descent?
Sure! I'd be happy to explain why coconut B hits the ground first.
To understand this, we need to consider the two factors that determine how long an object takes to fall to the ground: the initial vertical velocity and the horizontal distance traveled during the fall.
Let's break down the trajectories of coconuts A and B:
- Coconut A goes very high but falls not much farther from the spot it was launched. This tells us that it has a high initial vertical velocity but a short horizontal distance traveled during the fall.
- Coconut B, on the other hand, goes not as high as coconut A but falls much farther from the spot it was launched. This indicates that it has a lower initial vertical velocity but a longer horizontal distance traveled during the fall.
Now, it's important to note that the initial vertical velocity does not affect the time it takes for an object to fall to the ground. The only factor that matters is the vertical distance it needs to cover before hitting the ground.
Since coconut A goes higher but does not travel much farther horizontally, it will take a longer time to cover the vertical distance and hit the ground. On the other hand, coconut B goes lower but covers a longer horizontal distance, which means it will take a shorter time to hit the ground.
In simpler terms, coconut B reaches the ground faster because it travels a longer horizontal distance during its fall, making up for the lower initial height.
I hope this explanation helps! Let me know if you have any further questions.