The Effective Mass of a Ball in the Air

• Autores: J. Messer, J. Pantaleone
• Localización: The Physics Teacher, ISSN 0031-921X, Vol. 48, Nº. 1, 2010, págs. 52-54
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • The air surrounding a projectile affects the projectiles motion in three very different ways: the drag force, the buoyant force, and the added mass. The added mass is an increase in the projectiles inertia from the motion of the air around it. Here we experimentally measure the added mass of a spherical projectile in air. The results agree well with the calculation of the added mass for an ideal fluid. By accounting for the added mass, high school or undergraduate students can easily measure the acceleration of gravity accurately with a beach ball projectile.