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Neglecting air resistance effects, what path does the package travel as observed by the pilot? Explain.

User Slybloty
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Final answer:

Neglecting air resistance, the package released from a plane would travel in a diagonal line straight downward from the perspective of the pilot. This is due to gravity's influence on the package, maintaining the package's initial forward velocity while accelerating it downwards.

Step-by-step explanation:

The path that a package would travel as observed by the pilot, neglecting air resistance, would be straight down towards the Earth. This is because, once the package is released, it would only be under the influence of gravity, which acts downward. In the absence of air resistance, the package would continue to have the forward velocity of the plane but also gain velocity downward due to gravity, making its overall path a diagonal line straight down when observed from the plane. This is an example of Newton's first law of motion, stating that an object in motion will continue in the same direction at a constant velocity unless acted upon by a net external force.

User DCO
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