Determine the initial velocity of the ball and give its horizontal and vertical components.

Question

In a particular laboratory experiment, a spring gun placed on a table fires a steel ball horizontally outward. A student determines that the ball starts 1.0 m above the floor and travels a horizontal distance of 2.7 m.

Answer 1

We first find the time for the ball to fall 1 meter since this is a horizontal projectile problem

1 =(0.5)(9.8)t^2

t= 0.45 s

If it traveled 2.7 m in 0.45 s, we know the initial horizontal velocity (which does not change) = 6 m/s