Baseball Drop Calculation During Flight

A baseball is thrown horizontally with a velocity of 44 m/s. It travels a horizontal distance of 18 m to the plate before it is caught. How far does the ball drop during its flight? Group of answer choices

0.82 m

8.2m

8m

82m

To determine how far the baseball drops during its flight, we can use the following steps:

1. Calculate the time of flight: Since the baseball is thrown horizontally, we can find the time it takes to travel the horizontal distance using the formula:

   [ \text{time} = \frac{\text{distance}}{\text{velocity}} ]

   Given:

   • Horizontal distance = 18 m
   • Horizontal velocity = 44 m/s

   [ \text{time} = \frac{18 , \text{m}}{44 , \text{m/s}} \approx 0.409 , \text{s} ]

2. Calculate the vertical drop: The vertical drop can be calculated using the formula for the distance fallen under constant acceleration due to gravity:

   [ d = \frac{1}{2} g t^2 ]

   where:

   • ( g ) (acceleration due to gravity) ≈ 9.81 m/s²
   • ( t ) is the time of flight we just calculated.

   Plugging in the values:

   [ d = \frac{1}{2} \times 9.81 , \text{m/s}^2 \times (0.409 , \text{s})^2 ]

   [ d \approx \frac{1}{2} \times 9.81 \times 0.167 \approx 0.82 , \text{m} ]

Thus, the ball drops approximately 0.82 m during its flight.

The correct answer is 0.82 m.