Kinematics-1

As Physics

By Yasir Naseer.
Z

lLearning outcomes:
Candidates should be able to:

(a) define displacement, speed, velocity

and acceleration
(b) use graphical methods to represent
displacement, speed, velocity and
acceleration
(c) find displacement from the area
under a velocity-time graph
(d) use the slope of a displacement-time graph to find velocity

(e) use the slope of a velocity-time graph to find acceleration

(f) derive, from the definitions of velocity and acceleration, equations that represent
uniformly accelerated motion in a straight line

(g) solve problems using equations that represent uniformly accelerated motion in a
straight line, including the motion of bodies falling in a uniform gravitational field without
air resistance

(h) recall that the weight of a body is

equal to the product of its mass and the
acceleration of free fall
(i) describe an experiment to determine
the acceleration of free fall using a
falling body
 (j) describe qualitatively the motion of
bodies falling in a uniform gravitational
field with air resistance

(k) describe and explain motion due to a

uniform velocity in one direction and a
uniform acceleration in a perpendicular
direction.
**For Quick Revision.
Distance: Total length covered irrespective of the direction of motion.

Displacement: The Shortest possible (straight line) Distance moved in a certain

direction.

Speed: Distance travelled per unit time.

Velocity: is defined as the rate of change of displacement, or, displacement per unit
time
{NOT: displacement over time, nor, displacement per second, nor, rate of change of
displacement per unit time}

Acceleration: is defined as the rate of change of velocity.

Using graphs to find displacement, velocity and acceleration:

 The area under a velocity-time graph is the change in displacement.

 The gradient of a displacement-time graph is the {instantaneous} velocity.
 The gradient of a velocity-time graph is the acceleration
 The area under a Acceleration-time graph is the change in velocity.

The 'SUVAT' Equations of Motion

The most important word for this chapter is SUVAT, which stands for:

 s (displacement),
 u (initial velocity),
 v (final velocity),
 a (acceleration) and
 t (time)

of a particle that is in motion.

Below is a list of the equations you MUST memorise, even if they are in the formula book,
memorise them anyway, to ensure you can implement them quickly.
1. v = u +at derived from definition of acceleration: a = (v –u) / t

2. s = ½ (u + v) t derived from the area under the v-t graph

3. v2 = u2 + 2as derived from equations (1) and (2)

4. s = ut + ½at2 derived from equations (1) and (2)

These equations apply only if the motion takes place along a straight line and the
acceleration is constant; {hence, for eg., air resistance must be negligible.}

Motion of bodies falling in a uniform gravitational field with air resistance:

Consider a body moving in a uniform gravitational field under 2 different conditions:

Without Air Resistance:

Assuming negligible air resistance, whether the body is moving up, or at the highest
point or moving down, the weight of the body, W, is the only force acting on it, causing it
to experience a constant acceleration. Thus, the gradient of the v-t graph is constant
throughout its rise and fall. The body is said to undergo free fall.

With Air Resistance:

If air resistance is NOT negligible and if it is projected upwards with the same initial
velocity, as the body moves upwards, both air resistance and weight act downwards.
Thus its speed will decrease at a rate greater than 9.81 ms-2 . This causes the time taken
to reach its maximum height reached to be lower than in the case with no air resistance.
The max height reached is also reduced.

At the highest point, the body is momentarily at rest; air resistance becomes zero and
hence the only force acting on it is the weight. The acceleration is thus 9.81 ms -2 at this
point.

As a body falls, air resistance opposes its weight. The downward acceleration is thus less
than 9.81 ms-2. As air resistance increases with speed, it eventually equals its weight
(but in opposite direction). From then there will be no resultant force acting on the body
and it will fall with a constant speed, called the terminal velocity.
Section 1: Graphs and their Analysis

Q-1 Which feature of a graph allows acceleration to be determined?

A the area under a displacement-time graph

B the area under a velocity-time graph

C the slope of a displacement-time graph
D the slope of a velocity-time graph

Q-2 One object moves directly from P to R. In a shorter time, a second object moves
from P to Q to R.

Which statement about the two objects is D They travel the same distance.
correct for the journey from P to R?

A They have the same average

speed.
B They have the same average
velocity.
C They have the same
displacement.

Q-3 Which graph represents the motion of a car that is travelling along a straight road with a
uniformly increasing speed?
Q-4 When a car driver sees a hazard ahead, she applies the brakes as soon as she can and
brings the car to rest. The graph shows how the speed v of the car varies with time t after the
hazard is seen.

Which graph represents the variation with time t of the distance s travelled by the car
after the

hazard has been seen?

Q-5 The graph of velocity against time for an object moving in a straight line is shown.

Which of the following is the corresponding graph of displacement against time?

Q-6 The diagram shows a velocity-time graph.
What is the displacement during the last D 24 m
2 seconds of the motion?

A 6m

B 12 m

C 18 m

Q-7 The diagram shows a velocity-time

graph for a car. What is the distance
travelled between time t = 0 and t = 4 s?

A 2.5 m B 3.0 m

20 m D 28 m

Q-8 The curved line PQR is the velocity-time graph for a car starting from rest.
Winter 15
 What is the average acceleration of
the car over the first 5 s?

A the area below the curve PQ

B the area of the triangle PQS
C the gradient of the straight
line PQ
D the gradient of the tangent
at Q
Q-9 The diagram shows a velocity-time graph for a vehicle.
The vehicle, moving at 4.0 m s–1,
begins to accelerate at time = 0. What
is the vehicle’s acceleration at
time = 3.0 s?

A 0.67 m s–2

B 1.0 m s–2

C 1.3 m s–2

D 2.0 m s–2

Q-10 The graph shows how the velocity v of a firework

rocket changes with time t. At which point on the graph
does the rocket have the greatest acceleration?
Winter 13

Q-11 The graph shows how the speed v of a sprinter changes with time t during a 100 m
race.
What is the best estimate of the A 0.5 m s–2
maximum acceleration of the sprinter?
 B 1 m s–2

C 3 m s–2

D 10 m s–2

Q-12 A car driver sharply presses down the accelerator when the traffic lights go green.
The resultant horizontal force acting on the car varies with time as shown.

Which graph shows the variation with time of the speed of the car?

Q-13 A radio-controlled toy car travels along a straight line for a time of 15 s. The
variation with time t of the velocity v of the car is shown below.
 Summer 14

What is the average velocity of the toy car for the journey shown by the graph?

A –1.5 m s–1 B 0.0 m s–1

C 4.0 m s–1 D 4.5 m s–1

Q-14 At time t = 0, a body moves from rest with constant acceleration in a straight line.
At time t, the

body is distance s from its rest position. A graph is drawn of s against t 2, as shown.

Which statement describes the acceleration of the body?

C It is equal to twice the

value of the gradient of the
graph.

D It is equal to the
reciprocal of the gradient of
the graph
A It is equal to half the value of the gradient of the
graph.

B It is equal to the value of the gradient of the

graph.
Q-15 The graph shows how the velocity v of an object moving in a straight line varies over time t = 0
to T seconds.

Which graph represents the displacement s of the object in the time t = 0 to t = T ?

Q-16 A mass on the end of a spring bounces up and down as shown, after being released at time
t = 0.
Which graph shows how the velocity varies with time?

Q-17 The graph shows how the acceleration of an object moving in a straight line varies
with time.

The object starts from rest. Summer 14

Which graph shows the variation with time of the velocity of the object over the same
time
Q-18 The diagram shows a velocity-time graph for a mass moving up and down on the end of a
spring. Which point represents the velocity of the mass when at the lowest point of its motion?

Q-19 A car is travelling at constant velocity. Its brakes are then applied, causing uniform
deceleration.
Which graph shows the variation with distance s of the velocity v of the car? Q-7
9702/12/F/M/16
Q-19. The graph shows the horizontal speed υ of a long jumper from the start of his run to the
time when he reaches the take-off board. 24

Use the graph to

estimate his maximum acceleration.

Acceleration = .........................................................
(3)
Use the graph to estimate the distance of the ‘run-up’.

Distance = .........................................................
(2)
(Total 5 marks)

Q-20. The following graph shows the speed v of a body during a time interval of just 3 seconds.
38
Use the graph to determine the magnitude of the acceleration a.

acceleration = ......................................................... (2)

Find the distance travelled by the body between t = 6 s and t=8 s..

Distance = ….………………………
(2)
(Total 4 marks)

Q-21. An athlete runs a 100 m race. The idealised graph below shows how the
athlete’s velocity v changes with time t for a 100 m sprint.
By considering the area under the graph, calculate the maximum velocity vmax of the athlete.

Maximum velocity = ........................................ (3)

Using the axes below, sketch a graph showing how the acceleration of this athlete
changes with time during this race. Mark any significant values on the axes.
Q-22 The variation with time t of the velocity v of a ball is shown in Fig. 2.1. Q-2
summer 15/23

Fig. 22.1
The ball moves in a straight line from a point P at t = 0. The mass of the ball is 400 g.
(a) Use Fig. 22.1 to describe, without calculation, the velocity of the ball from t = 0 to t = 16 s.

...................................................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................................................

............................................................................................................................................... [2]
 (b) Use Fig. 22.1 to calculate, for the ball,
(i) the displacement from P at t = 10 s,

displacement = ...................................................... m
[2]
(ii) the acceleration at t = 10 s,

acceleration = ................................................ m s –2 [2]

(c) Use your answers in (b)(i) and (b)(ii) to determine the time from t = 0 for the ball to return to
P.

time = ....................................................... s [2]

 Answers
Graphs of kinematics

Q-1 D Q-2 C

Q-3 A Q-4 B

Q-5 C Q-6 C

Q-7 D Q-8 C

Q-9 C Q-10 B

Q-11 C Q-12 A

Q-13 B Q-14 C

Q-15 A Q-16 A

Q-17 A Q-18 D

Q- 19 A Q-20 3.33 m s-2

Q-21 1.33 m s-2, 9.2 m

Q-22 10 ms -1
Q-23 25m , , -2.5 m s-2, 4.47 s

Section 2: Equations of Motion

Q-1 An aeroplane travels at an average speed of 600 km h –1 on an outward flight and
at 400 km h–1 on

the return flight over the same distance. What is the average speed of the whole
flight?
Winter 13
A 111 m s–1
B 167 m s–1
C 480 km h–1
D 500 km h–1

Q-2 A sprinter runs a 100 m race in a straight line. He accelerates from the starting
block at a constant

acceleration of 2.5 m s–2 to reach his maximum speed of 10 m s–1. He maintains this
speed until he

crosses the finish line. Summer

15
Which time does it take the sprinter to run the race?

A 4s
B 10 s
C 12 s
D 20 s
Q-3 A bicycle brakes so that it undergoes uniform deceleration from a speed of 8 m s –1 to 6 m s–1
over a distance of 7 m. If the deceleration of the bicycle remains constant, what further
distance will it travel before coming to rest?

A 7m B 9m C 16 m D 21 m

Q-4 A motorist travelling at 10ms–1 can bring his car to rest in a distance of 10 m. If he had been
travelling at 30ms–1, in what distance could he bring the car to rest using the same braking
force?

A 17 m B 30 m C 52 m D 90m

Q-5 A car is travelling with uniform acceleration along a straight road. The road has marker posts
every 100 m. When the car passes one post, it has a speed of 10 m s–1 and, when it passes
the next one, its speed is 20 m s–1. What is the car’s acceleration?

A 0.67 m s–2 B 1.5 m s–2 C 2.5 m s–2 D 6.0 m s–2

Q-6 The diagram shows an arrangement to stop trains that are travelling too fast.

Trains coming from the left travel at a speed of 50 m s–1. At marker 1, the driver must apply the
brakes so that the train decelerates uniformly in order to pass marker 2 at no more than
 10 m s–1. The train carries a detector that notes the times when the train passes each marker
and will apply an emergency brake if the time between passing marker 1 and marker 2 is less
than 20 s. How far from marker 2 should marker 1 be placed?

A 200 m

B 400 m

C 500 m

D 600 m

Q-7 In order that a train can stop safely, it will always pass a signal showing a yellow light before it
reaches a signal showing a red light. Drivers apply the brake at the yellow light and this results
in a uniform deceleration to stop exactly at the red light. The distance between the red and
yellow lights is x.
What must be the minimum distance between the lights if the train speed is increased by 20 %,
without changing the deceleration of the trains?

A 1.20 X

B 1.25 X

C 1.44 X

D 1.56 X

Q-8 On a particular railway, a train driver applies the brake of the train at a yellow signal, a distance
of 1.0 km from a red signal, where it stops.The maximum deceleration of the train is 0.2 m s –2.
Assuming uniform deceleration, what is the maximum safe speed of the train at the yellow
signal?

A 20 m s–1
B 40 m s–1
C 200 m s–1
D 400 m s–1

Q-9 A supermarket trolley, total mass 30 kg, is moving at 3.0 m s–1. A retarding force of 60 N is
applied to the trolley for 0.50 s in the opposite direction to the trolley’s initial velocity. What is
the trolley’s new velocity after the application of the force?

A 1.0 m s–1 B 1.5 m s–1 C 2.0 m s–1 D 2.8 m s–1

**Q-10 An aeroplane travels at an average speed of 600 km h–1 on an outward flight and at 400 km
h–1 on the return flight over the same distance. What is the average speed of the whole
flight?

A 111 m s–1 B 167 m s–1 C 480 km h–1 D 500 km h–1

Q-11 In a cathode-ray tube, an electron is accelerated uniformly in a straight line from a

speed of 4 × 103 m s–1 to 2 × 107 m s–1 over a distance of 10 mm. What is
the acceleration of the electron?
Summer 13
Q-12 There has been a proposal to build a train tunnel underneath the Atlantic Ocean from England
to America. The suggestion is that in the future the trip of 5000 km could take as little as one
hour. Assume that half the time is spent accelerating uniformly and the other half is spent
decelerating uniformly with the same magnitude as the acceleration.

(a) Show that the acceleration would be more then 1.5 m s–2. (2)

(b) Calculate the maximum speed. (2)

Speed = ...............................................................

Q-13 (a) Define

(i) velocity, Q-3 winter 13 /23

..................................................................................................................................

.............................................................................................................................. [1]

(ii) acceleration.

..................................................................................................................................
 .............................................................................................................................. [1]

(b) A car of mass 1500 kg travels along a straight horizontal road.The variation with time t
of the displacement x of the car is shown in Fig. 1.1.

(i) Use Fig. 13.1 to describe qualitatively the velocity of the car during the first six seconds of the
motion shown. Give reasons for your answers.

..................................................................................................................................................................
..............

..................................................................................................................................................................
..............
..................................................................................................................................................................
......

………………………………......................................................................................................................
....... [3]
(ii) Calculate the average velocity during the time interval t = 0 to t = 1.5 s.

average velocity = ....................................... m s –1 [1]

(iii) Show that the average acceleration between t = 1.5 s and t = 4.0 s is –7.2 m s–2.
[2]

Q14 A trolley moves down a slope, as shown in Fig. 14.1.

The slope makes an angle of 25° with the horizontal. A constant resistive force F R acts
up the

slope on the trolley. At time t = 0, the trolley has velocity v = 0.50 m s−1 down the slope.

At time t = 4.0 s, v = 12 m s−1 down the slope.

(a) (i) Show that the acceleration of the trolley down the slope is approximately 3 m s−2.
[2]

(ii) Calculate the distance x moved by the trolley down the slope from time t = 0 to t = 4.0 s.
 x = ..................................................... m [2]

(iii) On Fig. 14.2, sketch the variation with time t of distance x moved by the trolley.

Q-4 winter 14 /21

Q-15. The diagram shows a mass attached by a piece of string to a glider which is
free to glide along an air track.

25

A student finds that the glider takes 1.13 s to move a distance of 90 cm starting from
rest. Calculate the speed of the glider after 1.13 s.

Speed = .........................................................
(2)
 Calculate its average acceleration during this time.

Average acceleration = .........................................................

(2)

How would you test whether or not the acceleration of the glider is constant?

.................................................................................................................................................

.................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................... (3)

Answers of Section 2
Equations of Motion

Q-1 C Q-2 C

Q-3 B Q-4 D

Q-5 B Q-6 D

Q-7 C Q-8 A

Q-9 C Q-10 C

Q-11 2 X 10 -16 ms -2
Q-12 2.7 km /s

-1
Q-13 30 ms Q-14 25m

Q-15 1.6 ms -1,1.4 ms -2

Stopping Distance

Q-1 The variation with time t of velocity v of a car is shown in Fig. 1.1.

winter 11
At time t = 0, the driver sees an obstacle in the road. A short time later, the driver
applies the

brakes. The car travels in two stages, as shown in Fig. 1.1.

(a) Use Fig. 2.1 to describe the velocity of the car in

1. stage 1,

..........................................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................................... [1]
2. stage 2.

..........................................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................................... [1]

(b) (i) Calculate the distance travelled by the car from t = 0 to t = 3.5 s.
 total distance = ............................................ m [2]
(ii) The car has a total mass of 1250 kg. Determine the total resistive force acting on
the car in stage 2.

force = ............................................. N [3]

(c) For safety reasons drivers are asked to travel at lower speeds. For each stage, describe
and explain the effect on the distance travelled for the same car and driver travelling at

half the initial speed shown in Fig. 1.1.

(i) stage1:.........................................................................................................................................

.................................................................................................................................................................

............................................................................................................................................................ [1]

(ii)stage2:................................................................................................................................................

.................................................................................................................................................................

..................................................................................................................................................................
.. [2]

*Q-2 A car is travelling along a straight road at speed v. A hazard suddenly appears in front of
the car. In the time interval between the hazard appearing and the brakes on the car
coming
into operation, the car moves forward a distance of 29.3 m. With the brakes applied, the
front

wheels of the car leave skid marks on the road that are 12.8 m long, as illustrated in Fig.
2.1.

It is estimated that, during the skid, the magnitude of the deceleration of the car is 0.85
g where g is the acceleration of free fall.

(a) Determine

(i) the speed v of the car before the brakes are applied,
 v = …………………… m s–1 [2]

(ii) the time interval between the hazard appearing and the brakes being applied.

time = ……………..…………. s [2]

(b) The legal speed limit on the road is 60 km per hour. Use both of your answers in (a) to comment
on the standard of the driving of the car.

.................................................................................................................................................................

.................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................................... [3]
Section 3

Stopping Distance

Q-1 37.35 m , 7900 N

-1
Q-2 14.6 ms , 2.0 s
Section # 4 Free Fall
(Ignoring Air drag)

Q-1 A stone is thrown horizontally from the top of a cliff. Air resistance is negligible.
Summer 15

Which graph shows the variation with time of the vertical component of the stone’s
velocity?

Q-2 A boy throws a ball vertically upwards. It rises to a maximum height, where it is momentarily at
rest, and falls back to his hands. Which of the following gives the acceleration of the ball at
various stages in its motion? Take vertically upwards as positive. Neglect air resistance.

Q-3 A firework rocket is fired vertically upwards. The fuel burns and produces a
constant upwards
force on the rocket. After 5 seconds there is no fuel left. Air resistance is negligible.
What is the acceleration before and after 5 seconds?
Summer 15
Q-4 A stone is dropped from the top of a tower of height 40 m. The stone falls from rest and air
resistance is negligible. What time is taken for the stone to fall the last 10 m to the
ground?

A 0.38 s B 1.4 s C 2.5 s D 2.9 s

Q-5 An object falls 10.0 m from rest before entering some water. Assuming negligible air
resistance, what is the time taken to reach the water and the speed with which the object
reaches the water?

Q-6 The diagram shows a laboratory experiment in which a feather falls from rest in a long
evacuated vertical tube of length L.
C 0.38 L

The feather takes time T to fall from the top to the bottom
of the tube. How far will the feather have fallen from the D 0.50 L
top of the tube in time 0.50 T?

A 0.13 L

B 0.25 L
Q-7 The graph shows how velocity v varies with time t for a bungee jumper.At which point is the
bungee jumper momentarily at rest and at which point does she have zero acceleration?

Q-8 An object is thrown with velocity 5.2 m s –1 vertically upwards on the Moon. The
acceleration due
to gravity on the Moon is 1.62 m s–2. What is the time taken for the object to return to its
starting point?
Summer 14

A 2.5 s B 3.2 s

C 4.5 s D 6.4 s
Q-9 A ball is released from rest above a horizontal surface and bounces several times.
The graph shows how, for this ball, a quantity y varies with time. What is the quantity y ?

D velocity

A acceleration

B displacement

C kinetic energy

Q-10 A body having uniform acceleration a increases its velocity from u to v in time t.
Which expression would not give a correct value for the body’s displacement during time
t?

Summer-15

Q-11 A stone is thrown upwards from the top of a cliff. After reaching its maximum
height, it falls past the cliff-top and into the sea. The graph shows how the vertical
velocity v of the stone varies with time t after being thrown upwards. R and S are the
magnitudes of the areas of the two triangles.

What is the height of the cliff-top above the sea?

A R D R–S

B S

C R+S
Q-12 The velocity-time graph below is for a stone thrown vertically up into the air. Air resistance is
negligible.The stone is thrown up at time zero. Area X represents a distance of 5 m. Area Y
represents a distance of 3 m. What is the displacement of the stone from its initial position at
time t ?

C 5m

D 8m
A 2m

B 3m
Q-13 A ball is released from rest above a horizontal surface. The graph shows the variation with
time of its velocity.

Areas X and Y are equal. This is because

A the ball’s acceleration is the same during its upward and downward motion.

B the speed at which the ball leaves the surface after an impact is equal to the
speed at which it

returns to the surface for the next impact.

C for one impact, the speed at which the ball hits the surface equals the speed at
which it leaves
the surface.

D the ball rises and falls through the same distance between impacts.

Q-14 A stone is thrown vertically upwards. A student plots the variation with time of its
velocity. What is the vertical displacement of the stone from its starting point after 5
seconds?

A 20 m

B 25 m

C 45 m

D 65 m

Q-15 An experiment is performed to measure the acceleration of free fall g. A body falls between
two fixed points. The four measurements shown below are taken.
Which measurement is not required for the calculation of g ? Summer 14

A the distance fallen by the body

 B the initial velocity of the body
C the mass of the body
D the time taken for the body to fall

Q-16 Two markers M1 and M2 are set up a vertical distance h apart. A steel ball is
released at time zero from a point a distance x above M 1.

The ball reaches M1 at time t1 and

reaches M2 at time t2. The acceleration of
the ball is constant.

Which expression gives the acceleration

of the ball?

Q-17 A ball is released from rest above a horizontal surface. It strikes the surface and
bounces several

times. The velocity-time graph for the first two bounces is shown. Winter 15
What is the maximum height of the ball after the first bounce?

A 0.20 m
B 0.25 m
C 0.45 m
D 0.65 m

Q-18 A stone is dropped from a height of 20 m above water. The graph shows the
variation with time of
the velocity of the stone.

winter 15
Which statement describes the approximate position of the stone four seconds after it is
dropped?

A It is at a distance of 10 m above the surface of the water.

B It is at a distance of 10 m below the surface of the water.

C It is at a distance of 20 m below the surface of the water.

D It is at a distance of 30 m below the surface of the water.

Q-19 The water surface in a deep well is 78.0 m below the top of the well. A person at
the top of the
well drops a heavy stone down the well. Air resistance is negligible. The speed of sound
in the air is 330 m s–1.
Winter 15

What is the time interval between the person dropping the stone and hearing it hitting
the water?

A 3.75 s B 3.99 s
C 4.19 s D 4.22 s
Q-20 . The diagram shows a velocity-time graph for a ball bouncing vertically on a hard surface.

At what instant does the graph show the ball to be in contact with the ground for the third time?

......................................................................................................................................... (2)

The downwards-sloping lines on the graph are straight. Why are they straight?

............................................................................................................................................
Sketch a displacement-time curve on the axes below for the first second of the motion.

(3)

What is the displacement of the ball when it finally comes to rest?

............................................................................................................................................
(1)
Calculate the height from which the ball is dropped.
 Height = .........................................................
(3)

Q-21 A girl stands at the top of a cliff and throws a ball vertically upwards with a speed
of 12ms–1,

as illustrated in Fig.21.1.

At the time that the girl throws the ball, her hand is a height h above the horizontal
ground at

the base of the cliff. The variation with time t of the speed v of the ball is shown in Fig.
21.2.
Speeds in the upward direction are shown as being positive. Speeds in the downward
direction are negative.

(a) State the feature of Fig. 21.2 that shows that the acceleration is constant.

................................................................................................................................... [1]

(b) Use Fig. 9.2 to determine the time at which the ball
(i) reaches maximum height,

time = ………………………………. s
(ii) hits the ground at the base of the cliff.

time = ………………………………. s [2]

(c) Determine the maximum height above the base of the cliff to which the ball rises.

Height = ………………………………..
 Answers
Free Fall with no air drag.

Q-1 D Q-2 B

Q-3 A Q-4 A

Q-5 D Q-6 B

Q-7 C Q-8 D

Q-9 B Q-10 D

Q-11 D Q-12 A

Q-13 D Q-14 B

Q-15 C Q-16 D

Q-17 A Q-18 B

Q-19 D

Q-20 1.25 m , 1.25 m

Q-21 1.2 s , 4.4s ,7.2 m

Section # 5 Free Fall
(With Air drag)

Q-1 A sky diver falls vertically from a stationary balloon. She leaves the balloon at time
t = 0. At time t = T, she reaches terminal velocity. Beyond the time shown in the graphs,
she opens her

parachute. Which graph shows the variation with time t of the force F due to air
resistance?
Q-2 The graph relates to the motion of a falling body.

Which is a correct description of the graph?

A y is distance and air resistance is negligible B y is distance and air resistance is not
negligible

C y is speed and air resistance is negligible D y is speed and air resistance is not
negligible

Q-3 A small steel ball falls freely under gravity after being released from rest. Which graph best
represents the variation of the height h of the ball with time t ?
Q-4 A ball falls from rest through air and eventually reaches a constant velocity. For this fall, forces
X and Y vary with time as shown. What are forces X and Y ?

Q-5 A body falls from rest in a vacuum near the Earth’s surface. The variation with time t of its
speed v is shown below.

Which graph shows the variation with time t of the speed v of the same ball falling in air
at the

same place on Earth?

Q-6 The graph shows the variation with time of the speed of a raindrop falling
vertically through air.
Which statement is correct? Summer
14
A The acceleration decreases to produce a steady speed.
B The acceleration increases as the speed increases.
C The air resistance decreases as the speed increases.

D The resultant force increases as the speed increases.

Q-7 Which displacement-time graph best represents the motion of a falling sphere, the
initial

acceleration of which eventually reduces until it begins to travel at constant terminal velocity?

Q-8 A football is dropped from the top of a tall building. Which acceleration-time graph best
represents the motion of the football through the air?
Q-9 An object is dropped from a great height and falls through air of uniform density. The
acceleration of free fall is g. Which graph could show the variation with time t of the
acceleration a of the object?

Q-10 A raindrop falls vertically from rest in air. The variation with time of the speed of
the raindrop is
shown in the graph. Summer 15

Which statement about the raindrop is correct?

A At point X, the raindrop has an acceleration of 9.81 m s–2.

B At point Z, the force on the raindrop due to air resistance has reached its
maximum value

and so the acceleration of the raindrop has also reached its maximum value.

C At point Z, the force due to air resistance is equal and opposite to the weight of
the raindrop

and so the speed of the raindrop is zero.

D The resultant force on the raindrop at point Y is less than the resultant force on
the raindrop

at point X.

Q-11 A body falling in a uniform gravitational field encounters air resistance. The air
resistance

increases until terminal velocity is reached. Which factor does not affect its terminal
velocity?

A the density of the air summer

15
B the height from which the body falls

C the mass of the body

D the shape of the body
Q-12 (b) A raindrop falls vertically from rest. Assume that air resistance is negligible.
(i) On Fig. 12.1, sketch a graph to show the variation with time t of the velocity v of the

raindrop for the first 1.0 s of the motion. [1]

Q-1/9702/22/O/
N/12

(ii) Calculate the velocity of the raindrop after falling 1000 m.

velocity = ........................................ m s –1 [2]

(c) In practice, air resistance on raindrops is not negligible because there is a drag force.
This drag force is given by the expression in (a).

(i) State an equation relating the forces acting on the raindrop when it is falling at
terminal velocity.

[1]

(ii) The raindrop has mass 1.4 × 10–5 kg and cross-sectional area 7.1 × 10–6 m2. The
density of the air is 1.2 kg m–3 and the initial velocity of the raindrop is zero. The value of C is 0.60.
1. Show that the terminal velocity of the raindrop is about 7 m s–1. [2]
2. The raindrop reaches terminal velocity after falling approximately 10 m. On Fig. 12.1, sketch the
variation with time t of velocity v for the raindrop. The sketch should include the first 5 s of the motion.
[2]
Q-13 A sky-diver jumps from a high-altitude balloon.
(a) Explain briefly why the acceleration of the sky-diver

(i) decreases with time,

..................................................................................................................................................................
..............

..................................................................................................................................................................
........ [2]
(ii) is 9.8 m s–2 at the start of the jump.

..................................................................................................................................................................
....... [1]

(b) The variation with time t of the vertical speed v of the sky-diver is shown in Fig. 13.1.

Use Fig. 13.1 to determine the magnitude of the acceleration of the sky-diver at time
t = 6.0 s.

acceleration = ..................................... m s –2 [3]

(c) The sky-diver and his equipment have a total mass of 90 kg.

(i) Calculate, for the sky-diver and his equipment,

1. the total weight,
 weight = ........................................... N [1]
2. the accelerating force at time t = 6.0 s.

force = ........................................... N [1]

(ii) Use your answers in (i) to determine the total resistive force acting on the sky-diver
at time t = 6.0 s.

force = ........................................... N [1]

Q-14. (a) Using one of the equations of motion for constant acceleration, show
that, for a body dropped from rest over a small distance s, the acceleration due to
gravity g, can be found from the equation
[3]

S= ut + ½ at 2

(b) An experiment is carried out to investigate the motion of a light polystyrene ball when it is
allowed to fall from rest, at point A, in air. A camera is used to record the positions of the falling
ball after regular intervals of time. The diagram is not to scale.
(i) The camera takes pictures at a frequency of 10·0 Hz. Calculate the time interval between pictures.

[1]

Q-15 (a) One of the equations of motion may be written as

V 2 = u 2 + 2as.

(i) Name the quantity represented by the symbol a.

..................................................................................................................................

(ii) The quantity represented by the symbol a may be either positive or negative.
State

the significance of a negative value.

.................................................................................................................................. [2]

(b) A student investigates the motion of a small polystyrene sphere as it falls from
rest alongside a vertical scale marked in centimetres. To do this, a number of flash
photographs of the sphere are taken at 0.1 s intervals, as shown in Fig. 15.1.

The first photograph is taken at time t = 0. By reference to Fig. 15.1,

(i) briefly explain how it can be deduced that the sphere reaches a constant speed,

.........................................................................................................................................

.........................................................................................................................................
(ii) determine the distance that the sphere has fallen from rest during a time of

1. 0.7 s,
 distance = …………………………………. cm

2. 1.1 s.

distance = …………………………………. cm [4]

(c) The student repeats the experiment with a lead sphere that falls with constant
acceleration and does not reach a constant speed. Determine the number of flash
photographs that will be observed against the 160 cm

scale. Include in your answer the photograph obtained at time t = 0.

number = …………………………………. [3]

Q16 (a) The distance s moved by an object in time t may be given by the expression

where a is the acceleration of the object.

State two conditions for this expression to apply to the motion of the object.

1. .....................................................................................................................................

.........................................................................................................................................
2. .....................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................... [2]
(b) A student takes a photograph of a steel ball
of radius 5.0 cm as it falls from rest. The
image of the ball is blurred, as illustrated
in Fig. 16.1.

The image is blurred because the ball is

moving while the photograph is being
taken.

The scale shows the distance fallen from

rest by the ball. At time t = 0, the top of
the ball

is level with the zero mark on the scale.

Air resistance is negligible. Calculate, to
an appropriate number of significant
figures,

(i) the time the ball falls before the photograph is taken,
 time = ............................................ s [3]
(ii) the time interval during which the photograph is taken.

time interval = ................................... s [3]

(c) The student in (b) takes a second photograph starting at the same position on the
scale.The ball has the same radius but is less dense, so that air resistance is not
negligible. State and explain the changes that will occur in the photograph.
..................................................................................................................................................................
..............

..................................................................................................................................................................
........ [2]

Section # 5 Free Fall

(With Air drag)

Q-1 B Q-2 D

Q-3 B Q-4 A

Q-5 D Q-6 A

Q-7 D Q-8 C

Q-9 A Q-10 D

Q-11 C

Q-12
Q-13

Q-14

Q-15

Q-16