If an object is dropped from a height of 144 ft, the function h(t) = -16t^2 + 144 gives the height of the object after t seconds. When will the object hit the ground?

Question

If an object is dropped from a height of 144 ft, the function h(t) = -16t^2 + 144 gives the height of the object after t seconds. When will the object hit the ground?

Answer 1

To find when the object will hit the ground, we need to find when the height of the object is equal to 0.

So we set h(t) = -16t^2 + 144 = 0 and solve for t:

-16t^2 + 144 = 0
-16t^2 = -144
t^2 = 9
t = ±3

Since time cannot be negative in this context, the object will hit the ground after 3 seconds.