you and a flight attendant toss a ball back and forth in an airplane in flight. Does the kinetic energy of the ball depend on the speed of the airplane? Defend you answer.

Answer 1

It depends on the speed of the plane if the frame of reference is terrestrial, namely if the object is considered stationary on firm ground.

If the frame of reference is the airplane itself, which cruises at a constant speed in rectilinear motion relative to the terrestrial frame of reference, then the kinetic energy does not depend on the speed of the plane.

Answer 2

It depends on the speed of the plane if frame of reference is in terrestrial or outside the plane. If the frame of reference is inside the plane then speed of plane does not cause any change