Poisonberry
Nov 28, 2007, 07:25 PM
A plane drops a hamper of medical supplies from a height of 4660 m during a practice run over the ocean. The plane's horizontal velocity was 121 m/s at the instant the hamper was dropped. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s/s. What is the magnitude of the overall velocity of the hamper at the instant it strikes the surface of the ocean?
red_cartoon
Nov 30, 2007, 10:01 AM
Time taken for the hamper to travel 4660m in free fall is :
t=\sqrt{\frac{2h}{g}}
Using this value of t you can calculate the horizontal component of the velocity at the instant the hamper touches ocean :
v_y = gt
Assuming that drag/friction of air is zero, we already know v_x=121ms^-1
So the overall velocity is :
v=\sqrt{v_x^2+v_y^2}
That's it, done :)
Hope this helps.