Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics

What Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics covers

Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics is examined in Component 1, Scientific principles of physical education. It covers forces acting on a projectile in flight, release velocity, height and angle, drag, streamlining and technology and lift, the Bernoulli effect and spin.

The 4 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

• Forces acting on a projectile in flightProjectiles and the forces on them, parabolic flight, the shot and the shuttlecock that departs from it, free-body diagrams, horizontal and vertical components, lift, the golf ball and the long jumper as a projectile.Open →
• Release velocity, height and angleRelease velocity, height and angle, the optimum angle, the shot putter below 45° and the long jumper at about 20°, angles too steep or flat, the javelin, glide and rotational techniques, video analysis and motion capture.Open →
• Drag, streamlining and technologyAerodynamics and hydrodynamics, drag and velocity, frontal cross-sectional area, streamlining after a turn, surface characteristics, drafting, wind tunnels, swimsuits and the polyurethane ban, dimpled golf balls and the javelin redesign.Open →
• Lift, the Bernoulli effect and spinLift and the angle of attack on a discus, the Bernoulli effect, the inverted aerofoil on a racing car, how spin is imparted, the Magnus effect, and the flight and bounce of topspin, backspin and sidespin balls.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Topspin vs Backspin

  Topspin: rotation carrying the upper surface forwards, so a ball dips. Backspin: rotation carrying the lower surface forwards, so a ball floats.

• Bernoulli effect vs Magnus effect

  Bernoulli effect: lower pressure where a fluid flows faster, giving an aerofoil lift. Magnus effect: a swerving flight path produced by a spinning ball.

• Parabolic flight vs Non-parabolic flight

  Parabolic flight: a symmetrical path when weight dominates air resistance. Non-parabolic flight: a lopsided path when air resistance dominates weight.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   What is a projectile?

   Model answer

   A projectile is any body or object launched into the air, such as a shot, a javelin or a long jumper. Once released, a projectile moves under weight, air resistance and sometimes lift.

2. 2

   Name the forces that act on a projectile during flight and the direction of each.

   Model answer

   Weight, due to gravity, acts downwards through the centre of mass. Air resistance acts opposite to the direction of motion. Some projectiles also experience lift, at right angles to the airflow.

3. 3

   What effect does weight have on a projectile during its flight?

   Model answer

   Weight pulls the projectile downwards throughout the flight, slowing its rise and speeding its fall. The vertical velocity changes by 9.81 m/s every second.

4. 4

   What is a parabolic flight path?

   Model answer

   A parabolic flight path is a symmetrical curve, the same shape on the way up as on the way down. Projectiles whose flight is dominated by weight follow a near-parabolic path.

5. 5

   Why does a shot follow an almost parabolic flight path?

   Model answer

   The shot is heavy, dense and small, and it travels relatively slowly. Weight is far larger than air resistance, so the path is close to a symmetrical parabola.

6. 6

   Explain why a badminton shuttlecock does not follow a parabolic flight path.

   Model answer

   A shuttlecock is very light, and its feathers create large air resistance, especially at high speed. Air resistance dominates weight, so the shuttle slows sharply and drops steeply. The path is asymmetrical.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics revision questions

What does Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics cover in Edexcel A-Level Physical Education?

4 subtopics: forces acting on a projectile in flight, release velocity, height and angle, drag, streamlining and technology and lift, the bernoulli effect and spin. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is Projectile Motion and Fluid Mechanics organised?

By the Edexcel 9PE0 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.