A pumpkin is launched in the air and travels at a horizontal velocity of 25 meters per second for 5 seconds. How far does it travel horizontally?

Answer:

30.3 meters, 172 degrees

Explanation:

To insure the most accurate solution, this problem is best solved using a calculator and trigonometric principles. The first step is to determine the sum of all the horizontal (east-west) displacements and the sum of all the vertical (north-south) displacements.

Horizontal: 2.0 meters, West + 31.0 meters, West + 3.0 meters, East = 30.0 meters, West

Vertical: 12.0 meters, North + 8.0 meters, South = 4.0 meters, North

The series of five displacements is equivalent to two displacements of 30 meters, West and 4 meters, North. The resultant of these two displacements can be found using the Pythagorean theorem (for the magnitude) and the tangent function (for the direction). A non-scaled sketch is useful for visualizing the situation.

Applying the Pythagorean theorem leads to the magnitude of the resultant (R).

R2 = (30.0 m)2 + (4.0 m)2 = 916 m2

R = Sqrt(916 m2)

R = 30.3 meters

The angle theta in the diagram above can be found using the tangent function.

tangent(theta) = opposite/adjacent = (4.0 m) / (30.0 m)

tangent(theta) = 0.1333

theta = invtan(0.1333)

theta = 7.59 degrees

This angle theta is the angle between west and the resultant. Directions of vectors are expressed as the counterclockwise angle of rotation relative to east. So the direction is 7.59 degrees short of 180 degrees. That is, the direction is ~172 degrees.

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