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How to Calculate the Force on a Projectile Curve

Toss a pencil across the room, and watch carefully. The pencil's flight will follow a curved, or parabolic, path. Physicists call this type of motion "projectile motion." This concept falls into horizontal and vertical components. The equations for these components share only the time (t) during which the projectile is in flight. The force of gravity acts on the vertical component of the projectile's curve, giving a projectile its characteristic flight path.

Things You'll Need

Measuring tape or stick
Tennis ball
Digital stopwatch
Calculator

Instructions

- 1
  Find a high, level surface with a sharp edge like a tabletop or kitchen counter.
- 2
  Measure the distance from the floor to the top of your surface using a tape measure or measuring stick, and record the measurement ̵2; for example, 1.5 meters (4.9 feet).
- 3
  Roll a tennis ball across the top of the surface and over the edge.
- 4
  Measure the amount of time it takes the tennis ball to fall from the edge of the level surface to the floor using a digital stopwatch. Start the stopwatch when the tennis ball leaves the edge of the surface, and stop it when the ball hits the floor. For example, it may take your tennis ball 0.553 seconds to fall from the table edge to the floor.
- 5
  Multiply the distance you measured between the top of your level surface and the floor by two using a calculator ̵2; for example, 1.5 x 2 = 3.0.
- 6
  Divide your answer by the square of the time in seconds you measured using a calculator ̵2; for example, 3/(0.553 x 0.553) = 9.81. The acceleration of gravity acting on the curve of your tennis ball projectile is 9.81 meters per second squared (32.2 feet per second squared).

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