Im in an air balloon and i drop a pound of a pound of feathers and a 1 pound bowling ball .. which will hit the floor first with no obstructions.?
2006-09-07 15:15:06 · 18 answers · asked by the Kazaam 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Trivia
they will hit at the same time
2006-09-07 15:21:50 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If I'm not mistaken, it's a version of an old riddle and the answer was they would both drop at the same rate, because a pound is a pound no matter what it is. However, it would only happen if the feathers were tightly wrapped.
If the feathers were left unwrapped and were just dumped over the side, then they would fall at a much slower rate than the bowling ball. Depending on how high you drop them from and how windy it is the feathers could be spread for miles before they finally land.
2006-09-07 23:12:37 · answer #2 · answered by JSalakar 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If no air resistance is present, the rate of descent depends only on how far the object has fallen, no matter how heavy the object is. This means that two objects will reach the ground at the same time if they are dropped simultaneously from the same height. This statement follows from the law of conservation of energy and has been demonstrated experimentally by dropping a feather and a lead ball in an airless tube.
When air resistance plays a role, the shape of the object becomes important. In air, a feather and a ball do not fall at the same rate. In the case of a pen and a bowling ball air resistance is small compared to the force a gravity that pulls them to the ground. Therefore, if you drop a pen and a bowling ball you could probably not tell which of the two reached the ground first unless you dropped them from a very very high tower.
Answered by: Dr. Michael Ewart, Researcher at the University of Southern California
2006-09-07 22:19:06 · answer #3 · answered by CassandraM 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I would have to say the bowling ball would hit the ground first because:
On Earth, objects eventually stop accelerating when they reach their "terminal speed," at which air resistance is as strong as gravity. Different objects have different terminal speeds--slower for feathers than for bowling balls.
Another force besides gravity makes itself felt: air resistance. Feathers and paper, for example, have little mass and a high surface area, making air resistance important -- so they fall slower.
If you did this experiment on the moon, however, they would both hit the ground at the same time because there is no air resistance-just gravity.
2006-09-07 22:26:48 · answer #4 · answered by opal63 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Assuming the feathers are in a bag or sac of some sort they would hit the ground at about the same time. Unless you're talking about the bird that dropped his pound of feathers - It would land first assuming that the bird weighed more than its pound of feathers.
2006-09-07 22:27:32 · answer #5 · answered by snowy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Neither one will hit the Floor since you are in a Hot air Balloon one will hit the ground.
2006-09-07 22:22:03 · answer #6 · answered by ? 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Since you say "no obstructions", the only difference between the two is the material of which they're constructed, which is an irrelevant consideration for the given question. They fall at the same rate.
2006-09-07 22:22:39 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A bowling ball has a minimum weight of 8 pounds. What you are dropping is not a bowling ball. There are other small balls that weigh one pound and they will work fine.
2006-09-07 22:21:36 · answer #8 · answered by damndirtyape212 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Well seing as they both weigh a pound, they should both hit at the same time.
2006-09-07 22:52:34 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends whice takes up more space, if the feathers are bigger, mass wise, they will hit second, because there will be more air resistance.
2006-09-07 22:25:29 · answer #10 · answered by _angi_ 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Both.
since they both weigh a pound.
2006-09-07 22:22:23 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋