Question

A plane is flying horizontally with speed 171 m/s at a height 6520 m above the ground, when a package is dropped from the plane. The acceleration of gravity is 9.8 m/s 2 . Neglecting air resistance, when the package hits the ground, the plane will be 1. directly above the package. 2. ahead of the package. 3. behind the package.

Answer 1

The package dropped from the plane will be ahead of the plane when it hits the ground, maintaining the same horizontal velocity as the plane due to inertia, while also accelerating downwards due to gravity.

Step-by-step explanation:

When a package is dropped from a plane that is flying horizontally with a speed of 171 m/s at a height of 6520 m above the ground, neglecting air resistance, the package will hit the ground ahead of the plane. This is because the package will continue to move horizontally at the same speed of the plane at the moment it was released, due to its inertia. There is no horizontal force applied after the package is dropped, so it maintains its horizontal velocity while accelerating downwards due to gravity. Thus, when the package hits the ground, it would have traveled the same horizontal distance as the plane from the drop point, resulting in the plane being directly above it or possibly slightly behind, depending on whether the horizontal motion of the plane changes during the package's fall.