This demonstration shows that in projectile motion, the horizontal and vertical components are independent. A ball is launched vertically from a cart traveling down a track. The ball flies up into the air and lands back in the cart.
* Equipment seen in the video may vary from equipment used in ND Demonstrations. See information and images below for ND equipment and setup.
Setup:
Place the cart track on the lab table and level it. Attach the launcher part way down the track.
Place the cart on the track with the ball in the cradle and the correct side facing the launcher. Make sure the launcher is aligned with the cart.
Push the ball down in the launcher to load the spring.
Push the cart down the track. As the cart passes the launcher, it will launch the ball into the air and catch it.
Notes:
It is recommended to do this demo before either of the other two ballistic cart demos as it provides the basis for the others.
Courses Used In:
PHYS 10111
PHYS 10310
PHYS 10410
PHYS 30210
Discussion and Polling Questions:
(before demo) Will the cart catch the projectile? If not, will the projectile fall ahead of or behind the cart?
Why do we intuitively think the ball will fall behind the cart?
We can see what this demo looks like from the outside reference frame. What does this experiment look like to the ball and cart in their reference frame?
How can we relate this to the situation of people inside of a train car?
Let's pretend we were the ones tossing a ball upwards and the cart was the one observing us? How is this situation different from the one we saw in the demo?
Equipment Needed:
Cart Track
Ballistic Cart with Launcher
Ball