Sunday, July 5, 2015

newtonian mechanics - Forces acting on an object about to hit the ground



I have a simple question, If I have a spanner or (any object) and I drop it. As it's just about to make contact with the ground what would the main forces acting on it be?



Answer



The Earth's gravity would be the main force acting upon it from the moment you let go, until the ground stops it's fall, or if high enough, until it reaches terminal velocity where air resistance equals the force of gravity and stops it's acceleration. If not at the north or south pole it will also have a very slight centrifugal force (pseudo force) from the spin of the Earth, which will be strongest at the equator. There will also be highly negligible, but not quite zero, tidal forces acting upon it which will depend on it's position in relation to the Earth, moon, sun, etc. If anyone can think of any other forces please comment.


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