Chapter 6, Problem 15A

Why doesn’t a heavy object accelerate more than a light object when both are freely falling?

To determine

The reason that heavy object does not accelerate more than a light object when both are freely falling.

Answer to Problem 15A

Free fall is when an object falls freely under the effect of gravity. Hence, both heavy and light object will have same acceleration.

Explanation of Solution

Introduction:

When any object is dropped from a height, the only acceleration acting on it is gravitational acceleration. And, the motion followed by the object is termed as free fall.

Thus, it can be observed that the acceleration acting on an object in a free fall is due to gravity only and is independent of the mass of the object.

Conclusion:

Hence, both the heavy as well as light object experiences same acceleration, termed as acceleration due to gravity, in a free fall.