What is Projectile Motion

A body thrown with some initial velocity and then allowed to move under the action of gravity alone, is known as a projectile.

If we observe the path of the projectile, we find that the projectile moves in a path. which can be considered as a part of parabola. Such a motion is known as projectile motion.

A few examples of projectiles are:

(i) a bomb thrown from an aeroplane

(ii) a javelin or a shot-put thrown by an athlete

(iii) motion of a ball hit by a cricket bat etc.

The different types of projectiles are shown in Figure. A body can be projected in two ways:


(i) It can be projected horizontally from a certain height.

(ii) It can be thrown from the ground in a direction inclined to it.

The projectiles undergo a vertical motion as well as horizontal motion. The two components of the projectile motion are (i) vertical component and (ii) horizontal component. These two perpendicular components of motion are independent of each other.

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