Question

A 1.5 kg bird is gliding at a height of 25 m, its velocity is 6 m/s in the horizontal direction.The bird sees a mouse on the ground and decides to attack. It stops gliding and dive bombs toward the

ground.
(a) What is the bird’s mechanical energy before diving?
(b) How fast is the bird traveling as it catches its prey?

Answer 1

a) 375J + 27J = 402J

b)

Step-by-step explanation:

the bird has both potential energy (mgh) and kinetic energy (1/2 * mv^2) before falling. add both of these up to get the total amount of mechanical energy before falling. find the values of h, m, and v, based on the question.

then, all the energy is converted into kinetic energy, because h=0 at the ground, so all the energy must be kinetic. therefore, set the initial answer from A to kinetic energy (final) for B, and solve for velocity.