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AS Daily A Level Physics question

2026-06-25 OCR A Kinematics — projectile motion (M3) OCR A Module 3.1.1 Motion — equations of motion under constant acceleration OCR A Module 3.1.1 Motion — projectile motion; independence of horizontal and vertical components

In a lab, a steel ball rolls off a 1.2 m-high bench horizontally at 1.5 m/s. In a second trial, it’s rolled off the same bench at 3.0 m/s. Air resistance is negligible. Which statement must be true?

  1. A The time to hit the floor is the same in both trials, and the horizontal distance in the second trial is about twice that in the first. (correct)
  2. B The time to hit the floor doubles, so the horizontal distance in the second trial is about twice that in the first.
  3. C The time to hit the floor halves, so the horizontal distance is about the same in both trials.
  4. D The time to hit the floor is the same in both trials, and the horizontal distance in the second trial is about four times that in the first.

Answer

The correct answer is A.

Correct: A — The time to hit the floor is the same in both trials, and the horizontal distance in the second trial is about twice that in the first. A — Correct: From the same height, the fall time depends only on vertical motion (t = sqrt(2h/g)), so it’s unchanged; horizontal distance = horizontal speed × time, so doubling speed doubles the distance. B — Incorrect: It assumes the fall time depends on horizontal speed; it doesn’t, so time does not double. C — Incorrect: The time does not halve; and if it did, the doubled speed would still change the distance, so saying the distance is the same is inconsistent. D — Incorrect: The fourfold increase wrongly suggests a square dependence on speed; for fixed time, horizontal distance is directly proportional to horizontal speed.

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