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1. A football player throws a football as far as he can. The ball makes an arc and stays in

the air for 4 seconds before hitting the ground. At what point on the arc is the vertical
acceleration the smallest? (ignoring air resistance)

User Nunos
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1 Answer

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The vertical acceleration of the football is constant and equal to the acceleration due to gravity (approximately 9.81 m/s² on the surface of the Earth), which acts downward. Therefore, the vertical acceleration remains the same throughout the entire motion, and it does not change along the path of the arc.

So, the vertical acceleration is the same at all points on the arc, and it is not influenced by the time the football is in the air. The vertical acceleration is always approximately 9.81 m/s² downward, regardless of the position of the football during its flight.
User Jacob Ewald
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