What is the acceleration of a projectile fired vertically upwards? Is it positive or negative?
Vertically downwards?
gravity always accelerates objects toward the center of the Earth
That is what I was thinking. I just was not sure if firing the object made a difference.
Either way it's -9.8m/s2 since it is slowing down due to the acceleration of gravity if thrown upwards. The same with vertically downwards, it's accelerating downwards -9.8m/s2 due to the acceleration of gravity.
The acceleration of a projectile depends on the direction in which it is moving and the forces acting upon it.
When a projectile is fired vertically upwards, the only force acting on it is gravity, which pulls it downward towards the Earth. As a result, the acceleration of the projectile is negative (-9.8 m/s^2), meaning it is directed towards the ground. This negative acceleration counters the initial upward velocity of the projectile and eventually brings it to a stop, after which it starts moving downwards.
When a projectile is moving downwards, it still experiences the force of gravity pulling it towards the Earth. In this case, gravity is aiding the motion of the projectile in the downward direction. Therefore, the acceleration of a projectile moving vertically downwards is still negative (-9.8 m/s^2), as it is still in the direction of gravity.