Physics, What moves faster ?

Question

If an object moves horizontally at 10m/s and if it falls at 10m/s^2, which is faster ?
I am asking this because I can make a sense of a distance covered per second, but its a bit confusing to try to sense a distance covered in seconds squared.

Answer 1

At first, you shouldn't think of an acceleration as m/s^2, you should think of it as meters per second (pause) per second. Every second, the object's speed changes by 10 m/s.

Over the first second, the horizontal motion is faster as the vertical velocity goes from zero (if you dropped it) to 10 m/s.

After one second, the vertical motion is faster.

Answer 2

The object that is falling is moving much faster at the end of a timed experiment. another way to express 10m/s^2 is to say 10m per second per second, if an object falls at this rate for 10 seconds it will be moving at 100m per second at the end of the tenth second. It's average speed will have been 50 m per second, it will have fallen 500 m as opposed to 100 m in the first instance.

Answer 3

You're comparing velocity and acceleration. The object moving at 10 m/s moves at that speed, which is constant. The object falling at 10 m/s^2 accelerates at a rate of 10 m/s every second. 10 m/s^2 = 10 (m/s)/s. So after one second it will be falling at 10 m/s, after two seconds it will be falling at 20 m/s, after three, 30 m/s, and so on.

Answer 4

We need more information to answer this - like how far (or how long in time) does it have to fall. That way, you can use that acceleration (10 m/s^2) to calculate final velocity downward, and if it is more than the 10 m/s.

10 m/s^2 means 10 meters per second per second, so it's speeding up by 10 m/s every second.

(also, for falling objects, we usually use 9.80 instead of 10.)

Answer 5

you can't compare two different measuring parameters like that. 10m/s is velocity, 10m/s^2 is acceleration. comparing them two is like comparing 10 meters with 10 pounds. in laymen's terms, velocity is how fast something moves, and acceleration is how fast that velocity changes. like when you are driving, your speedometer says you are going 50miles per hour, that's your velocity, then you put the petal to the metal, and see the speedometer's niddle going up, how fast that niddle moves is the acceleration. but of course there are no acceleration meters in most cars, you'll just have to feel the power under your seat!!

Answer 6

Your question is time dependent since you are comparing a velocity to an acceleration. Newton's Law translate to a body moving at a contstant speed will continue to move at that speed unless acted upon by and external force, and force equals mass times acceleration.

In the case you post, the object has a constant horizontal speed of 10m/sec. Assuming no horizontal force or impact, the object will continue to have a horizontal component of velocity equal to 10 m/s.
The vertical acceleration of - 10 m/sec^2 is an external force but only in the vertical direction. The force is mass times 10 m/sec^2. This results in an equation of motion in the vertical directin of vy(t)=vy0-10*t
where vy(t) is the instantaneous speed in the y direction, vy0 is the speed in the y direction at t=0.

As the object falls the total speed is
sqrt(vx(t)^2+vy(t)^2)
since the vx(t) is a constant at 10 m/s, and if vy0=0, then
speed(t)=sqrt(100+(10*t)^2)

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Answer 7

yo guy u have given t speed for one object&t accleration for t other case.
Undoubtedly if its a free fall the second's speed goes on increasing...coz the 1st is at a constant speed 2nd is moving with a constant accleration.u cant compare these two.if u want to do so take t instantaneous speed for t 2nd

Answer 8

Putting two and two together, and thinking of gravitational pull, I think the object falling would be faster than the object moving across the table.

Answer 9

depends on the distance traveled. object falls for 1m, it will never reach the 10m/s

Answer 10

how do u expect 2 compare 2 different quantities such as acceleration and velocity??..........bring it the same quantity and then try comparing.