Question

A segull flying horizontally at 15m/s drops a clam. The clam takes 3.0sec to hit the ground. How high was the seagull when the clam was dropped ?

Need formula and answer

Answer 1

The distance a dropped object falls, with gravity and no air resistance:

Distance = (1/2) (acceleration) (falling time)²

Without air resistance, the horizontal motion has no effect on the fall.

Acceleration of Earth gravity = 9.8 m/s²

Distance = (1/2) (acceleration) (falling time)²

Distance = (1/2) (9.81 m/s²) (3.0 s)²

Distance = (0.5) x (9.81 m/s²) x (9.0 s²)

Distance = (0.5 x 9.81 x 9.0) (m-s² / s²)

Distance = 44.15 meters

We don't care how fast the bird was flying horizontally. It doesn't change anything. (It DOES determine how far ahead of the drop point the clam hits the ground. Most problems like this ask for that distance. This one didn't.)