Projectile Motion Lab
Projectile Motion
You have probably watched a ball roll off a table and strike the floor. What determines where it will land? Could you predict where it will land? In this experiment, you will roll a ball down a ramp and determine the ball’s velocity with a pair of Photogates. You will use this information and your knowledge of physics to predict where the ball will land when it hits the floor.
[pic]
Figure 1
objectives
* MEASURE THE VELOCITY OF A BALL USING TWO PHOTOGATES AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE FOR TIMING. * Apply concepts from two-dimensional kinematics to predict the impact point of a ball in projectile motion. * Take into account trial-to-trial variations in the velocity measurement when calculating the impact point.
Materials
|POWER MACINTOSH OR WINDOWS PC |PLUMB BOB |
|LABPRO OR UNIVERSAL LAB INTERFACE |RAMP |
|LOGGER PRO |TWO RING STANDS |
|TWO VERNIER PHOTOGATES |TWO RIGHT-ANGLE CLAMPS |
|BALL (1- TO 5-CM DIAMETER) |METER STICK OR METRIC MEASURING TAPE |
|MASKING TAPE |TARGET |
Procedure
1. SET UP A LOW RAMP MADE OF ANGLE MOLDING ON A TABLE SO THAT A BALL CAN ROLL DOWN THE RAMP, ACROSS A SHORT SECTION OF TABLE, AND OFF THE TABLE EDGE AS SHOWN IN FIGURE 1.
2. Position the Photogates so the ball rolls through each of the Photogates while rolling on the horizontal table surface (but not on the ramp). Approximately center the detection line of each Photogate on
You have probably watched a ball roll off a table and strike the floor. What determines where it will land? Could you predict where it will land? In this experiment, you will roll a ball down a ramp and determine the ball’s velocity with a pair of Photogates. You will use this information and your knowledge of physics to predict where the ball will land when it hits the floor.
[pic]
Figure 1
objectives
* MEASURE THE VELOCITY OF A BALL USING TWO PHOTOGATES AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE FOR TIMING. * Apply concepts from two-dimensional kinematics to predict the impact point of a ball in projectile motion. * Take into account trial-to-trial variations in the velocity measurement when calculating the impact point.
Materials
|POWER MACINTOSH OR WINDOWS PC |PLUMB BOB |
|LABPRO OR UNIVERSAL LAB INTERFACE |RAMP |
|LOGGER PRO |TWO RING STANDS |
|TWO VERNIER PHOTOGATES |TWO RIGHT-ANGLE CLAMPS |
|BALL (1- TO 5-CM DIAMETER) |METER STICK OR METRIC MEASURING TAPE |
|MASKING TAPE |TARGET |
Procedure
1. SET UP A LOW RAMP MADE OF ANGLE MOLDING ON A TABLE SO THAT A BALL CAN ROLL DOWN THE RAMP, ACROSS A SHORT SECTION OF TABLE, AND OFF THE TABLE EDGE AS SHOWN IN FIGURE 1.
2. Position the Photogates so the ball rolls through each of the Photogates while rolling on the horizontal table surface (but not on the ramp). Approximately center the detection line of each Photogate on