Terminal velocity

• What is terminal velocity?

  Velocity remains constant with no acceleration
• What happens when an object first steps out of an airplane?

  It experiences gravitational pull as weight
• What force acts on a person falling from an airplane?

  Weight
• How does the weight of a person change during free fall?

  It remains the same throughout the fall
• What is the resultant force when a person first steps out of the plane?

  It equals the weight since no other forces act
• What force opposes the weight during free fall?

  Air resistance
• What causes air resistance during a fall?

  Collisions with tiny air particles
• What two factors affect the size of air resistance?

  Surface area and velocity of the person
• How does the surface area affect air resistance?

  Larger surface area increases air resistance
• How does velocity affect air resistance?

  Higher velocity increases air resistance
• What happens to the resultant force as a person accelerates downwards?

  It decreases as air resistance increases
• What does a velocity-time graph show during free fall?

  The graph becomes less steep as acceleration decreases
• What occurs when air resistance equals weight?

  The resultant force becomes zero
• What is the result of zero resultant force on an object?

  It cannot accelerate
• What happens when a parachute opens during a fall?

  Air resistance increases significantly
• How does the new terminal velocity with a parachute compare to the previous one?

  It is lower than the previous terminal velocity
• What are the key points about falling objects and terminal velocity?

  • Weight acts downwards, causing acceleration.
  • Air resistance opposes weight and increases with velocity.
  • Resultant force decreases as air resistance increases.
  • Terminal velocity occurs when air resistance equals weight.
  • Opening a parachute increases air resistance, lowering terminal velocity.
• What happens to an object when it reaches terminal velocity?

  It continues at a constant velocity
• What is the effect of air resistance on a falling object?

  It slows down the object's fall
• What is the relationship between weight and air resistance at terminal velocity?

  They are equal in magnitude