A passenger on a balloon drops a baseball over the side of the gondola. As the baseball falls faster, the drag force from air resistance increases.

Which of these describes what happens to the motion of the ball from the time the ball is dropped to the time when the drag force becomes equal to the force of gravity?

A The acceleration of the ball remains constant.

B The speed of the ball decreases.

C The acceleration of the ball decreases.

D The speed of the ball remains constant.

Question

Physics

Alexis Reese

16 September, 04:24

A passenger on a balloon drops a baseball over the side of the gondola. As the baseball falls faster, the drag force from air resistance increases.

Which of these describes what happens to the motion of the ball from the time the ball is dropped to the time when the drag force becomes equal to the force of gravity?

A The acceleration of the ball remains constant.

B The speed of the ball decreases.

C The acceleration of the ball decreases.

D The speed of the ball remains constant.

+3

Answers (2)

Know the Answer?

Landon Walter · Answer 1

Answer: The acceleration of the ball decreases.

Alex Fuller · Answer 2

The answer is C.

Explanation:

For acceleration to be achieved so to speak there must be a force acting on it. The only force on the ball before the air drag increases is gravity. As the air resistance increases the force resisting gravity increases. This means that the forces start to cancel out. Therefore the acceleration must get smaller.

These forces will continue to cancel until it reaches terminal velocity.