1. Kinematics and Angry Birds a Simulated Canon Download the projectile motion p

Question

1. Kinematics and Angry Birds a Simulated Canon

Download the projectile motion physics simulation from the PhET website: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/projectile-motion Select a projectile from the options on the top right and click “fire”. See where your projectile lands, then try to adjust the initial velocity and/or firing angle so that your projectile lands on the bull’s eye. Do NOT adjust the object’s mass or diameter. Note that you can erase your trajectories if they begin to clutter up your screen with the button next to the firing option. Once you’ve managed to hit the bull’s eye, answer the following:

A. What happens when you fire your projectile at the same velocity, but a different angle? What happens when you fire your projectile at the same angle, but a different velocity? Explain this behavior using your knowledge of vector components.

B. What angle allows your projectile to stay in the air for the longest amount of time? Again, how does this make sense in the context of vector components?

C. Select a different type of projectile with a different mass. Keep your angle and firing velocity the same, and fire the new projectile. How does the trajectory of the new projectile compare to that of the old one? Is this a surprising result? Explain your answer by referencing the basic equations of motion with constant acceleration and/or Newton’s laws.

D. Go back to your original type of projectile. Keeping everything else constant, what angle will allow your projectile to travel the farthest horizontal distance? What angle will allow your projectile to reach the greatest vertical height?

E. Set your angle to some value between 10o and 30o and fire the cannon. Move the bull’s-eye to where your projectile landed. Without changing anything else, can you find another firing angle that is significantly larger than 30o but less than 90o that will launch your projectile to the same spot (ie, dead center of the bull’s-eye)? What were your two angles? Find another pair of angles that will launch your projectile to the same location; what is the relationship between these pairs of angles? Keep in mind that the simulation has an uncertainty of about +/- 2 degrees; this will obscure the relationship.

Explanation / Answer

here,

A.

when the velocity is same and the angle is different ,

and when the angle is same and velocity is changed,

the horizontal and vertical component of velocity is changed

therefore,

the trajectory of the particle is changed

B.

for the projectile to allow maximum time in air,

the vertical velocity should be maximum and

the angle with horizontal is 90 degree

C.

as the mass is changed,

therefore no change in the trajectory of projectile if there is no air resistance

D.

for the maximum horizontal distance ,

the angle with horizontal must be 45 degree

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