Range of a Projectile Lab
Date: 10/16/21014 Name: Sahildeep Aulakh Partner: Aman Bahia
Purpose:
To predict where a horizontally projected object will land.

Materials:
Stopwatch
Aluminum cup
Meter stick (2)
Marble
Masking tape

Procedure:
1. Construct horizontal and inclined ramps on the table ramps on the table top, using the two rules to create a track, and masking tape to hold it in place.
2. Align the end of the horizontal ramp with the edge of the table. Make a few test rolls, but catch the marble as it rolls off the table. The marble should stay in the U-shaped channels when you roll it down the inclined ramp. If the marble jumps across the table, then lower the ramp and try again.
3. Place 2 strips of making tape on the horizontal table top at 0.50m apart with the furthest piece being close to the edge of the table. Record the interval distance d in table 1.
4. Select a point on the incline where you will release the marble. Mark this location with a small piece of tape.
5. In order to determine the marble’s horizontal velocity, you must measure the time it takes for the marble to travel the known distance, d, along the horizontal channel. Release the ball from the tape mark on the ramp. Using a stopwatch, measure the time it takes for the ball to roll past the tape marks. Catch the ball as it rolls off the table. Record the time, t, in Table 1. Roll the ball twice more, releasing it for each trial from the same location on the ramp. Record these times in Table 1. Repeat until your data fits the definition of being precise!
6. Place the marble on the channel at the edge of the table. Measure the vertical distance, in meters from the bottom of the ball to the floor. Record the, dy, in table 1.
7. Mark the location where the ruler touches the ground with a small piece of tape.
Data:
Table 1
Trial
Distance (m)
Time (s)
1
0.50m
0.43s
2
0.50m
0.42s
3
0.50m
0.43s
4
0.50m
0.43s
5
0.50m
0.44s
Average
0.50m
0.43s
Vertical distance, dy: 0.765 m
Table 2 (projectile motion)
Time (s)
Distance (m)
Vertical Velocity (m/s)
0.00 s
0.0000 m
0.00 m/s
0.05 s
0.0123 m
-0.05 m/s
0.10 s
0.0490 m
-0.20 m/s
0.15 s
0.1103 m
-0.44 m/s
0.20 s
0.1960 m
-0.78 m/s
0.25 s
0.3063 m
-1.23 m/s
0.30 s
0.4410 m
-1.76 m/s
0.35 s
0.6003 m
-2.40 m/s
0.40 s
0.7840 m
-3.14 m/s
Calculations:
Average time:

Sample calculations for dy:

Sample calculations for vertical velocity:

Horizontal velocity:

Time for the ball:

Horizontal distance that ball should travel:

Conclusion:
The purpose of this lab is to study the properties of projectile motion. From the motion of a ball projected horizontally, the horizontal velocity of the ball can be determined from the calculated horizontal velocity and the time that the ball was falling from the table. And to predict where a horizontally projected object will land. The projectile range will be measured for various initial angles, and also calculated by applying the theory for motion with constant acceleration.
In our 10 time trials the measured the distance interval between the marked tapes happened to be 0.50 meters. The average time that we calculated was 0.43 seconds between the marked tapes. The ball covered a distance of 0.50 meters in 0.43 seconds. From this information we then calculated the horizontal velocity of the ball which happened to be 1.163 m/s. Horizontal velocity of the ball stays constant throughout the projectile motion because gravity is the force that is acting on the ball as it ascends and descends (gravity doesn't act in the horizontal direction). We calculated the time that the ball would be in air by using the vertical distance which is