Answer to Question #50214 in Mechanics | Relativity for aakash

Question

considering no air resistance.suppose we throw a ball from the surface of the earth parellel to the ground,then after covering some distance in horizontal motion slowly the ball changes it's direction and falls in projectile motion on the surface of earth due to gravity.why does the ball do not fall vertically to the surface of the earth and instead it falls in projectile motion?why?how?

Answer 1

The gravity acts in vertical direction only. In vertical direction ball starts free falling. In horizontal direction, by the first Newton’s law, an object either remains at rest or continues to move at a constant velocity, unless acted upon by an external force. In this case, there are no forces in horizontal direction and ball will keep moving. Therefore, the ball will be in two motion simultaneously and will move in projectile motion.