Projectile motion is the movement of a body or a system projected or thrown into the air, exclusively under the action of gravity (acceleration). The body is generally known as a projectile, and its travelling path is known as its trajectory. The motion of descending bodies is a basic one-dimensional kind of projectile motion (no horizontal movement). Horizontal motion is a type of projectile motion that occurs in a horizontal plane controlled by force acting on it. For a short length, horizontal motion and vertical components of a projectile are independent and perpendicular to each other. A projectile’s horizontal speed component is constant during the entire flight.
Read more: Horizontal Motion
Horizontal Motion Example Questions with Answers
1) What is meant by motion?
Motion is the phenomenon in which a body varies its location with respect to time. It is mathematically expressed in terms of frame of reference distance, displacement, speed, velocity, and acceleration. In other words, it is measured as a change in the body’s position relative to the frame of reference with the change in time.
2) What is meant by projectile motion?
When an object is thrown in an arbitrary direction near the surface of the Earth, it takes a curved and stable acceleration path to the Earth’s centre (assuming that body stays close to the Earth’s). The trajectory of such a body is called a projectile, and its motion is called a projectile motion.
3) What are the two separate rectilinear motions during projectile motion?
Two independent simultaneous motions are the cause of projectile motion.
X-axis: Uniform velocity is calculated along the X-axis and controls the horizontal (forward) motion of the body.
Y-axis: Uniform acceleration, which is the cause for the vertical (downward) motion of the particle.
4) What are the two types of projectile motion?
Projectile motion is categorised as horizontal motion and vertical motion.
5) What is meant by horizontal motion?
Horizontal motion is a type of projectile motion that occurs in a horizontal plane controlled by a force acting on it. For a short length, horizontal motion and vertical components of a projectile are independent and perpendicular to each other. A projectile’s horizontal speed component is constant during the entire flight. This is because, after initiating the projectile, no horizontal force acts on the body. Therefore, the projectile moves horizontally in a constant motion. For finding the length covered by a body, the equation below is used.
Distance = speed × Time = vt
6) Give some examples of projectile motion.
Some common examples of horizontal motion are:
- The revolution of the Earth around the Sun comes under horizontal motion.
- A ship moving in the sea.
- A bullet shell coming out from a gun.
- The movement of a carrom coin on the playing board.
- Launching a cannonball puts it in a horizontal motion.
7) Define ballistics.
Ballistics is the subfield of dynamics that is concerned with the behaviour, flight and effects of projectiles.
8) What is meant by a projectile?
A projectile is an object that is powered by means of an external force and then travels freely under the influence of air resistance and gravitational force. Although any bodies in motion through the air are known as projectiles, they are commonly found in sports and warfare.
9) A projectile’s horizontal speed component is ________ during the entire flight.
Answer: constant
Explanation: A projectile’s horizontal speed component is constant during the entire flight.
10) The motion of ________ bodies is a basic one-dimensional projectile motion.
Answer: descending
Explanation: The motion of descending bodies is a basic one-dimensional projectile motion.
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Practice Questions
1) What is meant by speed?
2) What is meant by acceleration?
3) What is the main difference between horizontal and vertical motion?
4) What is the relationship between acceleration due to gravity and horizontal motion?
5) What is the principle behind the working of a cannonball machine?
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