Motion in Two or

Three Dimension
What determines
where a batted
baseball lands?

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If a cyclist is going
around a curve at
constant speed, is
he accelerating?

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In our previous lesson, we have learned that the
motion of a particle along a straight line is
completely known if its position is known as a
function of time.

We will now extend this idea to a two or three

dimensional motion of a particle in the xyz plane.

To describe the motion of a particle in space, we

must first be able to describe the particle’s position.

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Position Vector

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Average Velocity

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Instantaneous Velocity
is the instantaneous rate of change of position
vector with respect to time.

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Average Acceleration
The average acceleration during a time
interval t is defined as the velocity
change during t divided by t

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Instantaneous Acceleration
The instantaneous acceleration is the instantaneous
rate of change if the velocity with respect to time

It is important to note that any particle following a curved path is

accelerating, even if it has constant speed.
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Instantaneous Acceleration

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Direction of Acceleration Vector
The direction of the acceleration vector depends
whether the speed is constant, increasing or decreasing.

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Projectile Motion
A projectile is any body given an initial
velocity that then follows a path
determined by the effects of gravity and air
resistance.

Two assumptions:
• free-fall acceleration is constant over the range
of motion and is directed downward
• the effect of air resistance is negligible

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Projectile Motion
With the assumptions made, we find that the path
of a projectile, which we call its trajectory, is always
a parabola.

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Projectile Motion
Projectile motion is confined to a vertical plane
determined by the direction of the initial velocity
because of the acceleration due to gravity which is
purely vertical; gravity cannot accelerate the
projectile sideways.

Analysis, therefore, of projectile motion is a

combination of horizontal motion with constant
velocity and vertical motion with constant
acceleration.

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Equations for Projectile Motion

With the assumptions made, we find that the path

of a projectile, which we call its trajectory, is always
a parabola.

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Equations for Projectile Motion
The initial velocity components of a projectile
are the :
horizontal component - v0x
vertical component - v0y

These components are related to the initial

speed, v0 , and the initial angle, .
So that:
v0x = v0cos
v0y = v0sin

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Horizontal Component of Motion
Horizontal velocity at any time, t, vx
The horizontal component of the velocity is constant at any time, t
vx = v0x = v0cos
To find the horizontal distance of the object from the initial point at time, t
x = vx t
x = v0xt
x = v0cost

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Vertical Component of Motion
The vertical component of the velocity since it is affected by gravity
At time, t, the vertical component is given by
v = v0 + gt
vy = v0y + gt
vy = v0sin + gt
At time, t, the vertical distance of the object from the initial point is
y = v0yt + 0.5gt2
y = v0sint + 0.5gt2

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Time of Flight
The time at which an object in projectile is on air is only affected by the vertical
component of motion.
If we let, tmax, be the time when the object reaches its maximum height
Then
−𝒗𝒊𝒚 −𝒗𝒊 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝜽 from vf = vi + gt
𝐭= = where vf = 0 at max height
𝒈 𝒈

And the total time of flight of the object will be

−𝟐𝒗𝒊 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝜽
𝐓 = 𝟐𝐭 =
𝒈
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Maximum Height
The maximum height of the projectile, H, is the highest vertical position it can
attain along its trajectory.
Since velocity is zero at the highest point

𝟐 𝟐
− 𝒗𝒊𝒚 − 𝒗𝒊 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝜽
𝐇= =
𝟐𝒈 𝟐𝒈

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Horizontal Range
The horizontal range, R, of a projectile is the maximum horizontal distance it
travels as it returns to the same horizontal level from where it was launched.

Since x = v0cost R = v0cosT

−𝟐𝒗𝒊 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝜽
And 𝐓=
𝒈
−𝟐𝒗𝒊 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝜽
Then 𝐑 = 𝒗𝒊 𝒄𝒐𝒔𝜽 ×
𝒈
𝟐
− 𝒗𝒊 × 𝟐𝒔𝒊𝒏𝜽𝒄𝒐𝒔𝜽
𝐑=
𝒈
− 𝒗𝒊 𝟐 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝟐𝜽
𝐑=
𝒈
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Launch Angle
Projectiles launched at the same initial velocity and with complementary launch
angles will attain the same horizontal range.

They will, however, have different maximum height and time of flight.
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 Example #1
A long jumper leaves the ground at an
angle of 20 above the horizontal and
at a speed of 11.0 m/s.
a) How far does he jump in the
horizontal direction?
b) What is the maximum height
reached?

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 Example #2
A batter hits a baseball so that it leaves the bat
at a speed of 37.0 m/s and an angle of 53.1.
a) find the position of the ball and its velocity
after 2.0 s
b) Find the time when the ball reaches the
highest point of its flight and its height
at this time
c) Find the horizontal distance from the
starting point when it is 20.0m above
the ground.

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Example #3
You throw a ball from your window 8.0m
above the ground. When the ball leaves
your hand, it is moving at 10.0 m/s at an
angle of 20 below the horizontal. How
far horizontally from your window will the
ball hit the ground when the vertical
component of its velocity is 6.19 m/s?

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Example #4
A rookie quarterback throws a football with an
initial upward velocity component of 12.0 m/s and
a horizontal upward velocity component of 20.0
m/s. Ignore air resistance.
a) How much time is required for the football to
reach the highest point of the trajectory?
b) How high is this point?
c) How much time is required for the football to
return to its original level?
d) How far has the ball travelled horizontally
during this time?
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Example #4
A stone is thrown from the top of a building
upward at an angle of 30 to the horizontal with
an initial speed of 20.0 m/s. The height from
which the stone is thrown upward is 45.0m above
the ground.
a) How long does it take the stone to reach the
ground?
b) What is the speed of the stone just before it
reaches the ground?

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Activity #1
1) On level ground a shell is fired with an initial
velocity of 50.0 m/s at 60.0 above the horizontal
and feels no appreciable air resistance.
a) Find the horizontal and vertical components of
the shell’s initial velocity
b) How long does it take the shell to reach its
highest point?
c) Find its maximum height above the ground
d) How far from its firing point does the shell land?
e) At its highest point, find the horizontal and
vertical components of its acceleration and
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Activity #1
2) Mayan kings and many school sports teams
are named for the puma, cougar, or mountain
lion – Felis concolor – the best jumper among
animals. It can jump to a height of 12.0 ft when
leaving the ground at an angle of 45. With
what speed does it leave the ground to make
this leap?

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Activity #1
3) A golfer hits a shot to a green that is elevated
3.0m above the point where the ball is struck.
The ball leaves the club at a speed 0f 14.0 m/s
at an angle of 40.0 above the horizontal. It
rises to its maximum height and then falls down
to the green. Ignoring air resistance, find the
speed of the ball just before it lands.

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Activity #1
4) An astronaut on a strange planet finds that
she can jump a maximum horizontal distance
0f 15.0 m if her initial speed is 3.00 m/s. what is
the free-fall acceleration on the planet?
5) The speed of a projectile when it reaches its
maximum height is one-half its speed when it is
at half its maximum height. What is the initial
projection angle of the projectile?

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