Question

John accidentally drops his keys off the balcony at his apartment. John's friend Tony just happens to walk by at that moment and picks up the keys to throw them back up to John. If John is 5.33 meters above the sidewalk where Tony is, and Tony throws at 18 m/s at a 40 degree angle above the horizontal, will the keys make it back to John?

Answer 1

Explanation:

In order to find out if the keys will reach John or not, we can use the formula of projectile motion to find the maximum height reached by the keys:

H = V²Sin²θ/2g

where,

V = Launch Speed = 18 m/s

θ = Launch Angle = 40°

g = 9.8 m/s²

Therefore,

H = (18 m/s)²[Sin 40°]²/(2)(9.8 m/s²)

H = 6.83 m

Hence, the maximum height that can be reached by the projectile or the keys is greater than the height of John's Balcony(5.33 m).

Therefore, the keys will make it back to John.