I'm having a bit of trouble with this problem.
A ball is thrown upwards and stays in the air for 3.65 seconds. What is the initial velocity?
(I use an acceleration of -10 m/s/s)
I got an answer of 18.25 m/s/s but I'm not sure that it's correct. I would love some help!
To solve this problem, you can use the equation of motion for an object in free fall:
vf = vi + at
Where:
- vf is the final velocity
- vi is the initial velocity
- a is the acceleration
- t is the time
In this case, the ball is thrown upwards, so the acceleration is -10 m/s^2 (negative because it opposes the direction of motion). The time it stays in the air is given as 3.65 seconds.
When the ball reaches its maximum height, its final velocity will be 0 m/s since it momentarily stops before falling back down. So we can set vf = 0.
0 = vi + (-10 m/s^2) * 3.65 s
Now, let's solve for the initial velocity (vi).
Subtracting (-10 m/s^2) * 3.65 s from both sides:
-(-10 m/s^2) * 3.65 s = vi
Simplifying:
vi = 36.5 m/s
So the initial velocity of the ball is 36.5 m/s.