Question

A 67 year old circus performer named Luigi who has a handlebar mustache and still pines after his high school sweetheart back in the old country is fired from a cannon angled upward at 8 degrees at 16 m/s. How far away from the cannon should they put the net to catch him when he lands?

Answer 1

This question is from projectile motion, i.e., throwing a body in the vertical direction with some angle(here 8 degrees) from the horizontal. To find the place at which net should be put is same as finding the range of the projectile motion.

Now the formula for range is given as :

Range = [(Velocity)² * (2Ɵ)] / g

where Ɵ is angle from the horizontal and 'g' is acceleration due to gravity.

Plugging velocity = 16m/s ; Ɵ = 8 degree and g = 9.8 m/s² in the formula

we get

Range = 16*16* sin(16 degree) / 9.8 = 7.2m

Therefore to catch Luigi net should be there at a distance of 7.2 metres.

Whole scenario is described diagrammatically below.