A friend claims that a bullet fired by a high-powered rifle travels for many meters in a straight-line path before it starts to fall. Why do you say? Explain

An Introduction to Physical Science
14th Edition
ISBN:9781305079137
Author:James Shipman, Jerry D. Wilson, Charles A. Higgins, Omar Torres
Publisher:James Shipman, Jerry D. Wilson, Charles A. Higgins, Omar Torres
Chapter2: Motion
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Problem 4AYK: Is an object projected vertically upward in free fall? Explain.
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A friend claims that a bullet fired by a high-powered rifle travels for many meters in a straight-line path before it starts to fall. Why do you say? Explain

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We can conclude the all bullets drop the same vertical distance in equal times. This is because the gravitational force acting on the bullet remains constant, so the vertical deceleration of the ball will be constant, meaning the vertical component of the velocity will be decreased for both, low horizontal velocity and high horizontal velocity moving bullets. The reason why the bullets determined with the high horizontal velocity travel for a longer distance is because their speed in the direction of the movement (horizontal velocity) is much greater, so for example they will travel for a longer distance in some instance of time before they move downwards due to the gravitational force acting in the same instance of time. This is not the case for the low horizontal velocity moving bullets, because they will travel for a lower distance in the same instance of time as the fast bullets, so their vertical displacement will happen in the same instance of time and will be constant (same as in the case of fast bullet) but the horizontal velocity will cause it to travel smaller distance in that time. Finally, the distance (horizontal) traveled by the faster bullet will be greater than the horizontal distance traveled by the slower bullet before they touch the ground

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