COLEGIO SAN AGUSTIN-BACOLOD

B.S. Aquino Drive, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental

Basic Education Department - Senior High School

PHY105 - GENERAL PHYSICS I

Projectile Motion - Lab Simulation

Link: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/projectile-motion

Take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the simulation and shoot stuff with
the cannon. Once you’ve somewhat satisfied your primal desires to shoot things,
follow along with the questions below. Be sure to document your experimental
procedures, observations, and calculations thoroughly during the laboratory
activity.

1. (USE INTRO MODE) Fire the projectile launcher straight upwards (angle = 90o) at 15 m/s. Set the height of
the launcher to zero, click the velocity vector components in order to observe the object’s velocity.
Record the following information:
a.) Time it took to hit the ground:
b.) Horizontal distance (range):
c.) Vertical distance (height):
• Is there a horizontal velocity (Vx) when an object is launched at 90°?
• Is there a vertical velocity (Vy) when an object is launched at exactly 90°?

2. (LAB MODE) Given an initial speed of 18m/s and the launch angles found on the table below,
consecutively fire a golf ball and a tank shell. Fill in the table below.

Golf Ball Tank shell

mass: 0.05kg mass: 42kg
Angle 1: 45° Angle 2: 30° Angle 1: 45° Angle 2: 30°

Time: Time: Time: Time:

Range: Range: Range: Range:

Max Height: Max Height: Max Height: Max Height:

• What can be observed regarding the air time, range and maximum height of the objects launched at the
same angle?

• How does the mass of an object affect its motion through the air?

3. (LAB MODE) You are now going to investigate the effect of launch angles on several different parameters;
air time, maximum height, and range. Before you begin, make sure to increase the height of the launcher
to 5m. Fire the projectile launcher at the following angles (with the same initial speed of 15 m/s and any
other variables that default), then fill in the table below.

Angle Initial Speed Time Maximum Range (m)

(m/s) (s) Height (m)
10° 15
20° 15
30° 15
45° 15
50° 15
60° 15
 COLEGIO SAN AGUSTIN-BACOLOD
B.S. Aquino Drive, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental
Basic Education Department - Senior High School

PHY105 - GENERAL PHYSICS I

70° 15
80° 15
• Explain how the launch angle affects the range of the projectile. What is the optimal angle for maximizing
range?
• Explain how the launch angle affects the maximum height reached by the projectile. Is there an angle that
maximizes the height?
• Discuss how the launch angle influences the total time of flight. Are there any angles that result in similar
times of flight?

4. (LAB MODE) Keep the mass at 5 kg; height of the launcher at 5m; angle at 25°. Change the initial velocity
to: 1) 10m/s; 2) 20m/s; 3) 30m/s.

a) Note what happens with the initial velocity (vi) and record:
Initial Velocity Range Total time

10m/s

20m/s

30m/s

• Explain how changing the initial velocity affects the range of the projectile. Are higher velocities associated
with longer or shorter ranges?
• Explain how changing the initial velocity affects the time of flight of the projectile. Are there any expected
trends in this regard?

CONCLUSION:
• Provide a comprehensive list of the different factors that affecting projectile motion that was identified during
this experiment? For each factor, please describe how it impacts the trajectory, range, maximum height, or time
of flight of the projectile, based on your observations and data analysis.

• How does the understanding gained from this laboratory activity on the various factors affecting projectile
motion contribute to your ability to predict and control the behavior of projectiles in real-world scenarios, and
how might this knowledge be applied in practical applications beyond the scope of this experiment?

Attach here at least 5 screenshots of the simulation to support your recorded data: