Question

A falling skydiver opens his parachute.


Which of the following statements is correct regarding direction of drag acting on his parachute?

• A. The direction of the drag will always be downward.
• B. Initially, the direction of drag will be upward and after some time the direction will be downwards.
• C. The direction of the drag will always be upward.
• D. The parachute will experience no drag.

Answer 1

The correct option is C The direction of the drag will always be upward.

• The main purpose of the parachute is to reduce the falling speed of the skydivers so that they can land on the ground safely.
• A parachute doesn't have streamlined body shape, hence it increases the drag.
• We know that the direction of friction is always opposite to the direction of relative motion. Therefore, since skydivers fall down due to the gravity and the motion is downwards, the drag experienced by the parachute is in the upward direction.
• This drag helps in reducing the falling speed of the skydivers.