Three balls (see below) are dropped simultaneously from the 40th floor of a tall building into the air below. A) In what order will they hit the ground, or will they arrive at the same time? B) Provide an explanation for your answer above.

Ball A (softball size; wt= 50 g)
Ball B (golfball size; wt= 100 g)
Ball C (softball size; wt= 100 g)

B will arrive before C because it has less air resistance, and the same weight as C.

A will arrive after C because it less weight but the same aerodynamnic resistance as C, assuming equal velocity.

Thus the order of hitting ground will be B, C, A.

Thank you sooo much! I was getting so mad at trying to figure out this answer, your are a life saver!

To determine the order in which the balls will hit the ground or whether they will arrive at the same time, we need to consider two factors: the weight of the balls and air resistance.

Let's start with the assumption that there is no air resistance, which means all the balls will fall at the same rate regardless of their weight. This assumption is not entirely accurate in real-life situations, but it will help us simplify the problem and understand the basic concept.

Since the balls are dropped simultaneously, they all start falling from the same height at the same time. Without air resistance, the only factor affecting the time it takes for an object to fall is its initial height. Since all three balls are dropped from the same height, they will hit the ground at the same time. Therefore, the answer to part A is that all three balls will arrive at the ground simultaneously.

Now let's consider the explanation for this answer. When an object is dropped, it experiences a force called gravitational force pulling it towards the ground. This force is the same for all objects regardless of their mass (weight). According to Newton's second law of motion, the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass. However, when we neglect air resistance, the net force acting on the balls is solely due to gravity, which is the same for all three objects.

As a result, the acceleration experienced by all three balls is the same, meaning their downward motion is uniform. Therefore, since they all start falling from the same height and experience the same acceleration, they will reach the ground at the same time.

It is important to note that in real-life situations, air resistance does come into play and can affect the fall time of objects with different masses. However, for the purpose of this problem, we assumed no air resistance to simplify the calculations and provide a clear explanation of the concept.