Question

A tornado lifts a truck 252 m above the ground. As the storm continues, the tornado throws the truck horizontally. It lands 560 m away from where it was picked up.

How fast was the truck traveling horizontally through its flight? Round your answer to the nearest tenth.



m/s

Answer 1

Vertical and horizontal motions are independent. Time to fall t from height h = 252 m:

t = sqrt(2h/g) = sqrt(2·252 / 9.8) ≈ 7.171 s.

Horizontal speed v = horizontal distance / time = 560 / 7.171 ≈ 78.1 m/s.

Answer: 78.1 m/s.