ShareGravity - What Goes Up Must Come Down!
Gravity is a force that is always pulling toward Earth. Doing the following activities will help you understand the affects of gravity on objects in motion.
What happens when you drop a ball? Gravity pulls the ball straight down.
Throwing a ball shows that force is needed to overcome gravity. When you throw a ball, does it keep going forever? Of course not. As it falls to the ground, does it fall straight down? Have you ever noticed what happens when you throw a ball to a friend far away from you?
Play Catch
Try this with a friend. Take a softball or baseball outside
to a large yard or park. Stand apart from each other and throw the ball
to your friend. Watch what happens to the ball.
Click to watch a QuckTime video showing a ball being thrown. Close the window when you finish watching the video.
What did you observe from the video when the ball was thrown?
Why does the ball follow a curved path?
As the ball moves forward, invisible gravity pulls downward
at the same time. Because of the pushing force of your throw and the pulling
force of gravity, the ball follows a curved path to the ground.
Drop It!
If you drop a big thing and a little thing, will the big thing fall faster?
What do you think will happen when:
- A bowling ball and tennis ball are dropped at the same time?
- A large rock and a small rock are dropped at the same time?
- A log and a stick are dropped at the same time?
Now, click the links above to view the video demonstrations. Close the window when you finish watching each video.
Did you notice that in each video, both objects touched the ground at the same time?
Analysis:
Were your observations surprising to you?
Isn't gravity and its effects fascinating!
