Two balls are thrown horizontally, one from the window of first floor which is 3 ~m high from the ground and second from the second floor which is 6 ~m high from the ground, of a multi storey building, with the same speed of 6 ~ms ⁻¹ . Calculate the distance that will separate the two balls when they hit the ground.

Step-by-step solution

The time taken for a ball thrown horizontally from a height h to reach the ground is given by t = 2h g . For the first ball thrown from height h₁ = 3 m: t₁ = 2 3 9.8 = 6 9.8 0.7825 s. The horizontal distance covered by the first ball is x₁ = v t₁ = 6 0.7825 = 4.695 m. For the second ball thrown from height h₂ = 6 m: t₂ = 2 6 9.8 = 12 9.8 1.1066 s. The horizontal distance covered by the second ball is x₂ = v t₂ = 6 1.1066 = 6.6396 m. The distance separating the two balls when they hit the ground is the difference in