Answer:
The tennis ball had a displacement of 26 meters southward.
The distance traveled is 82 m
Step-by-step explanation:
Distance and Displacement
A moving object constantly changes positions at defined periods of time. The total moved distance is the sum of each individual distance the object traveled. It can be written as:
dtotal=d1+d2+d3+...+dn
This sum is obtained independently of the direction the object moves.
The displacement only takes into consideration the initial and final points of the path defined by the object in its moving. The displacement, unlike distance, is a vectorial magnitude and can be even zero if the object starts and ends the movement at the same point.
The tennis ball makes the following moves:
16 meters northward
22 meters southward
12 meters northward
32 meters southward
The total distance traveled is the sum of all the individual distances:
dTotal = 16 + 22 + 12 + 32 = 82 m
The distance traveled is 82 m
Following each move, we can determine where the tennis ball ended up. Suppose it began at the origin and the northward direction is positive and the southward direction is negative.
Thus, the total displacement is:
Disp = +16 - 22 + 12 -32 = -26 m
The tennis ball had a displacement of 26 meters southward.