terminal velocity

• What is terminal velocity?

  Velocity remains constant with no acceleration
• What happens when an object reaches terminal velocity?

  It stops accelerating and maintains constant speed
• What force pulls objects downwards towards the Earth?

  Gravity
• What is the force called that a person feels due to their mass?

  Weight
• What happens to the weight of a person as they fall?

  It remains the same
• What is the resultant force when a person first steps out of an airplane?

  It is equal to their weight
• What force acts upwards against the weight during a fall?

  Air resistance
• What causes air resistance during a fall?

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

  Surface area and velocity
• How does 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 as a person falls?

  The graph becomes less steep over time
• What occurs when air resistance equals weight?

  The resultant force becomes zero
• What is the effect of opening a parachute on air resistance?

  It increases air resistance significantly
• What happens to the resultant force when a parachute is opened?

  It becomes upwards
• What happens to the terminal velocity when a parachute is deployed?

  It decreases compared to free fall
• What are the key points about falling objects and terminal velocity?

  • Weight pulls objects downwards
  • Air resistance opposes weight
  • Resultant force determines acceleration
  • Terminal velocity occurs when forces balance
  • Opening a parachute increases air resistance
  • New terminal velocity is lower with parachute
• What is the relationship between weight and air resistance at terminal velocity?

  They are equal in size
• What happens to an object's acceleration when it reaches terminal velocity?

  It becomes zero
• What is the effect of air resistance on a falling object initially?

  It is low compared to weight
• What happens to the air resistance as the velocity of a falling object increases?

  Air resistance increases
• How does the opening of a parachute affect the motion of a falling person?

  It causes upward acceleration or deceleration