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View Full Version : A pretty challenging kinetics question (for me).


tubage3dai
Jul 11, 2008, 09:10 PM
I kick a soccer off a cliff that is 50m, at 15 degrees above horizon at a velocity of 25m/s
a.) what's the distance from the base of the cliff to the place the soccer lands?
b.) what's the speed before it touches the ground (final speed)?

shonny7
Jul 28, 2008, 01:08 PM
Assuming you have mass of the ball, you can use any College Physics book to find out these answers. You would have to use potential/kinetic energy theorem to find it. But, I am not aware of any way to find it without having ball's mass.

Capuchin
Jul 28, 2008, 02:34 PM
Assuming you have mass of the ball, you can use any College Physics book to find out these answers. You would have to use potential/kinetic energy theorem to find it. But, I am not aware of any way to find it without having ball's mass.

I don't see why the mass would be relevant.

Civlian
Aug 10, 2008, 04:25 PM
You would use a formula that takes in account of the angle of kicikng the, which I don't feel like finding, but the first guy is wrong because the mass is irrelavent just like if you drop a hammer and a feather in a vacuum they would fall at the same time and hit the ground at the same time.

rayofthedead
Aug 10, 2008, 05:49 PM
Start with finding the time it takes for the ball to hit the ground going in the up/down (vertical) direction: Velocity in the vertical direction is 25m/s*sin (15 deg) = 6.47 m/s. Find the time it takes for the ball to hit the ground at 50 m below the cliff = -50m.

x= v*t - 9.8 m/s^2 * t^2 ----> -50m = 6.47*t - 9.8m/s^2 *t^2 (this is a quadratic equation) Solve the quadratic equation for the two roots, which happen to be 2.61 and -1.95. You don't care about negative time, so use 2.61 seconds.

Now do the horizontal direction: 25m/s*cos (15) = 24.148m/s
Multiply the speed times the time -----> 24.148m/s * 2.61 = 63m.