Question

Phil decides to drop a penny from on top of the Empire State Building which is 381m in the air. Assuming no Air resistance, what is the final velocity of the penny?

Answer 1

The final velocity of a penny dropped from a height of 381 meters, assuming no air resistance, would be approximately 86.4 meters per second.

Step-by-step explanation:

When Phil drops a penny from the top of the Empire State Building, which is 381 meters high, we can calculate the final velocity of the penny just before it hits the ground by using the kinematic equation for objects in free fall. The equation we use is:

v^2 = u^2 + 2gh

Where v is the final velocity, u is the initial velocity (which is 0 for an object being dropped), g is the acceleration due to gravity (approximately 9.81 m/s2), and h is the height from which the penny is dropped.

Plugging in the numbers, we get:

v^2 = 0 + 2 * 9.81 * 381

Calculating the above yields:

v = √(2 * 9.81 * 381) = √(7473.62) m/s

v ≈ 86.4 m/s

So the final velocity of the penny would be approximately 86.4 meters per second.