A field hockey ball is launched from the ground at an angle to the horizontal. What are the ball's horizontal and vertical accelerations at its maximum height?

A field hockey ball is launched from the ground at an angle to the horizontal. When it reaches its maximum height, the ball's horizontal and vertical accelerations are of interest. At its maximum height, a projectile's vertical velocity is zero, but acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s²) still acts downward. Hence, the vertical acceleration at the maximum height is 9.8 m/s² downwards. The horizontal velocity of a projectile remains constant throughout its flight, as air resistance is neglected in ideal physics problems. Therefore, the horizontal acceleration is 0 m/s², since there is no force acting in the horizontal direction in ideal physics scenarios.

Answered by RachelMeghanMarkle | 2024-06-24

In the absence of air resistance ...
-- The ball has no horizontal acceleration at any point in its flight.
-- The ball's vertical acceleration is 9.8 meters per second-squared downward at every point its flight, from the moment it leaves the toe of the kicker until it hits the ground.

Answered by AL2006 | 2024-06-25

At the maximum height of a launched field hockey ball, the horizontal acceleration is 0 m/s², while the vertical acceleration is -9.8 m/s² due to gravity. The horizontal motion is uniform, and gravity continues to act downward. Hence, the vertical acceleration remains constant throughout the ball's flight.
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Answered by AL2006 | 2024-10-01