Question

Refer to the force model below. Do you think the basketball is being caught on its way down or being lifted into the air? Explain your answer.

A hand holding a ball. A large arrow points upwards, and a smaller arrow points downward.

(1 point)

It is being caught on the way down. The hand holding the basketball appears to be catching the ball.

It is being lifted into the air. The hand holding the basketball appears to be lifting the ball.

It is being lifted into the air. The size of the arrows show that the upward force is greater than the force of gravity.

It is being caught on the way down. Stronger forces are represented by a blue arrow, in this case the force of gravity.
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Answer 1

The diagram shows the upward contact force from the hand larger than the downward weight (gravity) — so the net force is upward (the ball has an upward acceleration). That tells you the acceleration, not the direction of motion.

If the ball was moving downward when the hand contacted it, that upward net force would be slowing it (caught on its way down). If the ball was already moving upward, the same net upward force would speed it up (being lifted). Without information about the ball’s velocity before the forces were applied, you cannot tell which is happening.