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If a rock is thrown upward on the planet Mars, what can be said about its trajectory?

a) The trajectory will be more curved due to lower gravity.

b) The trajectory will be less curved due to higher gravity.

c) The trajectory will be similar to that on Earth.

d) The trajectory will be a perfect straight line.

User Dercni
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Final answer:

On the planet Mars, a rock thrown upward will have a more curved trajectory due to the planet's lower gravity, which is only 38% of Earth's gravity. The rock's trajectory will be a parabola with less curvature compared to one on Earth.

Step-by-step explanation:

If a rock is thrown upward on the planet Mars, the trajectory will be more curved due to the lower gravity on Mars compared to Earth. Since Mars has a surface gravity of only 38% of Earth's, objects thrown there experience less gravitational pull, and this affects their motion. Projectile motion, such as that of a thrown rock, results in a parabolic trajectory under the influence of gravity. On Mars, the weaker gravity would create a trajectory with less curvature. When a rock is thrown upward, it will slow down due to gravity until its velocity is zero at the peak of its trajectory. The acceleration due to gravity would be constant at -3.71 m/s^2 on the way up, zero at the top momentarily, and then -3.71 m/s^2 on the way down, since it's the same magnitude in the opposite direction when the rock is falling back down.

User Allisen
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