Question

What is meant by free fall? Two bodies ,one of mass 1g and other of mass 1kg are dropped from same height in vaccum.Compare the two time intervals in which the two bodies will hit the ground

Answer 1

A body is said to be in a ‘Free Fall’ when the following two characteristics are fulfilled:

1. The body is accelerating only due to earth’s gravitational force of attraction.

2. There is no friction due to air.

Let t be the time required to fall through a height h.

Using, S = ut + ½ at²

=> h = 0 + ½ gt²

=> t = √(2h/g)

Since, the time of fall is independent of the mass of the body, so, both the bodies will reach the ground simultaneously.