Question

A bomb is dropped from an airplane at a height of 1200 meters. The plane is flying horizontally at 160 m/s. About how far horizontally will the bomb fly before it hits the ground?

Answer 1

To determine the horizontal distance the bomb will fly before hitting the ground, we can use the equations of projectile motion. The bomb's horizontal displacement can be found by multiplying the horizontal velocity by the time it takes for the bomb to hit the ground. Using the given values, the bomb will fly approximately 2496 meters horizontally.

Step-by-step explanation:

To determine how far horizontally the bomb will fly before hitting the ground, we can use the equations of projectile motion. Since the bomb is dropped from an airplane and has only vertical acceleration due to gravity, the horizontal motion is constant. Therefore, the horizontal distance can be found by multiplying the horizontal velocity by the time it takes for the bomb to hit the ground.

First, we need to find the time of flight. We can use the equation h = (1/2)gt^2, where h is the initial height, g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s^2), and t is the time of flight. Rearranging the equation, we get t = sqrt(2h/g).

Substituting the given values, we have t = sqrt(2*1200/9.8) = sqrt(244.9) ≈ 15.6 seconds.

Now we can find the horizontal distance using the formula d = v*t, where d is the horizontal distance, v is the horizontal velocity, and t is the time of flight. Substituting the given values, we have d = 160*15.6 ≈ 2496 meters.