Motion of a

Freely
Falling
Body
 Objectives

Explain Galileos theory of motion

and Newtons laws of motion.
Apply all the equation for motion of
an object in free fall.
To solve problems on free falling
bodies and the acceleration of
gravity.
 Galileo
The remarkable
observation that all
free falling objects
fall at the same rate
was first proposed
by Galileo, nearly
400 years ago.
Galileo conducted experiments using
a ball on an inclined plane to
determine the relationship between
the time and distance traveled.
 Galileo
He found that the distance
depended on the square of
the time and that the
velocity increased as the
ball moved down the
incline.

The relationship was the same

regardless of the mass of the ball
used in the experiment.
 Galileo
The story that Galileo
demonstrated his
findings by dropping
two cannon balls off
the Leaning Tower of
Pisa is just a legend.
However, if the
experiment had been
attempted, he would
have observed that
one ball hit before the
other!
 Introduction to Free
Fall
A free-falling object is an object which is
falling under the sole influence of gravity.
That is to say that any object which is
moving and being acted upon only be the
force of gravity is said to be "in a state of
free fall."
This definition of free fall leads to two
important characteristics about a free-
falling object:
Free-falling objects do not encounter air
resistance.
All free-falling objects (on Earth)
accelerate downwards at a rate of 9.8
m/s/s or 32ft/s/s
 Freely Falling Body
The acceleration of freely falling
body is so important that physicist
called it acceleration due to gravity.
Denoted by letter g which is
equivalent to 32ft/sec2 or 9.8m/sec2.
Meaning in the 1st second, a falling
body accelerates from a stationary
position to a velocity of 9.8m/sec2,
after 2 seconds, the velocity is
doubled to 19.6m/sec2 after 3
seconds it triples to 29.4m/sec2
 Freely Falling Body
Since accelerating objects are
constantly changing their velocity,
you can say that the distance
traveled divided by the time taken
to travel that distance is not a
constant value.
A falling object for instance usually
accelerates as it falls.
The fact that the distance which
the object travels every interval of
time is increasing is a sure sign
that the ball is speeding up as it
falls downward
A simple rule to bear in mind
is that all objects (regardless
of their mass) experience
the same acceleration when
in a state of free fall.
When the only force is
gravity, the acceleration is
the same value for all
objects.
On Earth, this acceleration
value is 9.8 m/s/s that it is
given a special name - the
acceleration of gravity - and
a special symbol - g.
Newton
Newton's first
law - the law of
interaction states
that for every
action there's an
equal and
opposite
reaction.
Newton
Newton's second
law - the law of
acceleration states
that the
acceleration of an
object is directly
related to the net
force and inversely
related to its mass.
Newtons Law of Acceleration
Fnet =m*a
A=F/m
 Acceleration depends upon two
factors: force and mass.
The 10-kg elephant
obviously has more mass (or
inertia). This increased mass
has an inverse effect upon
the elephant's acceleration.
And thus, the direct effect of
greater force on the 10-kg
elephant is offset by the
inverse effect of the greater
mass of the 10-kg elephant;
and so each object
accelerates at the same rate
- approximately 10 m/s/s.
One Newton is defined as the amount
of force required to give a 1-kg mass an
acceleration of 1 m/s/s.
 Complete the table

Net Force Mass Acceleration

(N) (kg) (m/s/s)
1. 10 2 5 m/s/s
2. 20 2 10 m/s/s
3. 20 4 5 m/s/s
4. 10 2 5
5. 10 1 10
 Free Fall and the Acceleration of
Gravity
Free-falling objects are in a state
of acceleration.
The velocity of a free-falling
object is changing by
approximately 10 m/s every
second.
If dropped from a position of rest,
the object will be traveling
approximately 10 m/s at the end
of the first second, approximately
20 m/s at the end of the second
second, approximately 30 m/s at
the end of the third second, etc.
Free Fall and the Acceleration of
Gravity
The velocity of a free-
falling object which has
been dropped from a vf = g t
position of rest is
dependent upon the time
for which it has fallen. where g is the
The formula for acceleration of
determining the gravity. An
velocity of a falling approximate
object after a time of value for g on
t seconds is Earth is 10
m/s/s; more
exactly, its value
is 9.8 m/s/s.
Example calculations for
velocity
Calculate the Solution

velocity of a At t=6s
free-falling vf = (10 m/s2) (6 s)

object after six, = 60 m/s

and eight
seconds At t=8s
vf = (10 m/s2) (8 s)
= 80 m/s
vf = g t
 Velocity of Freely Falling
Body
If you were to observe the
motion of a free-falling object
you would notice that the
object averages a velocity of
5 m/s in the first second,
15 m/s in the second second ,
25 m/s in the third second ,
35 m/s in the fourth second ,
etc.
Our free-falling object would
be accelerating at a constant
rate.
 Distance
The distance which a free-
falling object has fallen from a
position of rest is also
dependent upon the time of
fall.
This distance can be computed
by use of a formula; the
distance fallen after a time of t
seconds is given by the
formula.
d = 0.5 g t2
where g is the acceleration of
 Example calculations for
distance
Example Calculations:
Calculate the At t = 1 s
distance fallen by d = (0.5) (10 m/s2) (1 s)2
a free-falling =5m
object after one,
At t = 2 s
two and five d = (0.5) (10 m/s2) (2 s)2
seconds = 20 m

d = 0.5gt2 At t = 5 s
d = (0.5) (10 m/s2) (5 s)2
= 125 m
 Distance
Given these average velocity
values during each consecutive
1-second time interval, the
object falls:
5 meters in the first second,
15 meters in the second
second (for a total distance of
20 meters),
25 meters in the third second
(for a total distance of 45
meters),
35 meters in the fourth
second (for a total distance of
80 meters).
 d=0.5(10g/s2 )(1s)2

v=0.5(10m/s2 )1s d= 20 -5
Distance Total Distance
Average
Time Traveled Traveled from 0
Velocity During
Interval During Time s to End of
Time Interval
Interval Time Interval
v=0.5gt d=dt -di d=0.5gt2

0 - 1 s 5 m/s 5m 5m
1 - 2 s 15 m/s 15 m 20 m
2 - 3 s 25 m/s 25 m 45 m
3 - 4 s 35 m/s 35 m 80 m
 The table illustrates that a free-falling
object which is accelerating at a constant
rate will cover different distances in each
consecutive second.
Further analysis of the first and last
columns of the table above reveal that
there is a square relationship between the
total distance traveled and the time of
travel for an object starting from rest and
moving with a constant acceleration.
For objects with a constant acceleration,
the distance of travel is directly
proportional to the square of the time of
travel.
Equation for motion of an
object in free fall:
d
v d v0t 0.5 gt 2

t
v vo v v 2 gd
2 2
0
g
t v0 v
d t
v vo gt 2
v f gt d 0.5 gt 2
 Sample Problem
A coin was dropped from the
top of the LTA building with a
height of 727 ft. If there is no
air resistance, how fast (ft/s)
will the coin be moving when it
hits the ground?
215.68 ft/s
 Solution A

d 0.5 gt 2
t 45.44
d 0.5(32 ft / s )t t 6.74
2 2

727 ft 0.5(32 ft / s )t 2 2

(727 ft ) v at
t
2
2
16 ft / s v (32 ft / s )(6.74 s )
2

v 215.68 ft / s
 Problem 1
A marble is dropped from a
bridge and strikes the water in
5 seconds. Calculate the speed
with which it strikes and the
height of the bridge.

(Vf = 49 m/s, d = 122.5 m)

 Solution 1
v f gt
v f (9.8m / s )(5s )
2

v f 49m / s

d 0.5 gt 2

d 0.5(9.8m / s )(5s )
2 2

d 122.5m
 P2
A feather is dropped on the moon
from a height of 1.40 meters. The
acceleration of gravity on the
moon is 1.67 m/s2. Determine the
time for the feather to fall to the
surface of the moon.
T = 1.29 sec
d 0.5gt 2 S2
2
1.40m 0.5( 1.67m/s )t 2
2
1.40m ( 0.835m/s )t 2
1.40m 2 Given :
t
0.835m/s 2 v i 0m/s
2 2 d 1.40m
1.68s t
a 1.67m/s 2
2
t 1.68s 1.29s t?
 P3
The observation deck of the
World Trade Center is 420 m
above the street. Determine
the time required for a penny
to free fall from the deck to the
street below.
T = 9.26 sec
S3 d 0.5 gt 2

Given 420m 0.5(9.8m / s )t 2 2

vi 0m / s
420m (4.9m / s )t2 2

d 420m 420m
t 2
g 9.8m / s 4.9m / s 2
2

t ? 85.7 s t
2 2

t 85.7 s 9.26 s
2
 P4
With what speed in miles/hr
(1 m/s = 2.23 mi/hr) must an
object be thrown to reach a
height of 91.5 m (equivalent to
one football field)? Assume
negligible air resistance.
V = 94.4 mi/hr
 P4 v v 2 gd
2
f
2
i

Given : 0m / s 2
v 2(9.8m / s )(91.5m)
2
i
2

g 9.8m / s 0 v 1793m / s
2 2 2 2
i

v f om / s v 1793m s
2
i
2 2

d 91.5m vi 1793m / s 42.3m / s

vi ?
t ? (42.3m / s )(2.23mi / hr )
vi
1m / s
vi 94.4mi / hr
 P5
A 10kg block being held at rest above the
ground is released. The block begins to
fall under only the effect of gravity. At the
instant that the block is 2.0 meters above
the ground, the speed of the block is
2.5m/sec. The block was initially released
at a height of how many meters.
D = 2.3 m
 v v 2 g (d d 0 )
2 2
0
S5 v0 0
d 0 initialheight v 2 g (d d 0 )
2

v0 0
2
v
d d0
2g
d 2m
2
0.5v
v 2.5m / s d0 d
g
m 10kg 2
0.5( 2.5m / s )
g 9.8m / s d0 2m
9.8m / s / s
d 2.3m
 Assignment
1. Miguel drops a pile of roof
shingles from the top of a roof
located 8.52 meters above the
ground. Determine the time
required for the shingles to reach
the ground.
2. Brandy throws his mother's
crystal vase vertically upwards with
an initial velocity of 26.2 m/s.
Determine the height to which the
vase will rise above its initial
height.
 Assignment
3. A kangaroo is capable of jumping to a
height of 2.62 m. Determine the take-off
speed of the kangaroo.
4. A stone is dropped into a deep well
and is heard to hit the water 3.41 s after
being dropped. Determine the depth of
the well.
5. Ronald McDonald is riding an Air
Balloon on his way to Subic. If Ronald
free-falls for 2.6 second, what will be his
final velocity and how far will he fall?
 Prepare for an EXAM next meeting.

END OF PRESENTATION
 A bowling ball falls
freely (near the
surface of the
Earth) from rest.
How far does it fall
in 4 seconds, and
how fast will it be
going at that time?

The ball's average speed for the first 4 seconds

is the average of 0 m/s and 40 m/s, its starting
and ending speeds, and distance = average
speed times time.
So the object will have fallen 80 meters, and its
 The position of a free-falling body (neglect
air resistance) under the influence of
gravity can be represented by the function
1 2
s (t ) gt v0t s0
2
where g is the acceleration due to gravity
(on earth ) and s0 and v0 are the initial
height and velocity of the object (when ).
 Example (Falling Object Problem) A ball is
thrown vertically upward from the ground
with an initial velocity of 160 ft/s.
(a) When will it hit the ground?
Solution. Since with and we need

with and we need

This is precisely when or and thus the

ball will hit the ground in 10 seconds.
 This illustrates that a free-falling object
which is accelerating at a constant rate
will cover different distances in each
consecutive
Average second. Total Distance
Distance
Traveled from 0
Further Time
Time Interval
analysis of Time
theInterval
first and
Velocity During Traveled During
Interval
s tolast
End of Time
Interval
columns of the table above reveal that
there is a square relationship between the
0-1s 5 m/s 5m 5m
total distance traveled and the time of
1travel
-2s for an object starting
15 m/s 15 m from 20rest
m and

2 - 3 moving with
25 m/s a constant25 m acceleration.
45 m
For objects with a constant
3-4s 35 m/s 35 m 80 m
acceleration, the distance of travel is
directly proportional to the square of
the time of travel.
 As such, if an object travels for twice the time, it
will cover four times (22) the distance; the total
distance traveled after two seconds is four times
the total distance traveled after one second.
If an object travels for three times the time, then it
will cover nine times (32) the distance; the distance
traveled after three seconds is nine times the
distance traveled after one second.
Finally, if an object travels for four times the time,
then it will cover sixteen times (42) the distance;
the distance traveled after four seconds is sixteen
times the distance traveled after one second.
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