The speed of a falling object is slowed by?

Answer 1

Under most circumstances, a falling object is slowed by any fluid through which the object falls. In normal, real world circumstances, this is the air or water.

There are attributes of the fluid that will also affect the rate of fall. The amount the object is slowed depends on how fast it is going, its shape and weight, and the viscosity and density of the fluid.

The faster the object is going, the greater the resistance of air through which it passes, resulting in a terminal velocity.

But a very heavy object is affected less than the air than a light one, so the terminal velocity of a cannonball is higher than the terminal velocity of a raindrop.

In general, the air offers more resistance to an object with more area, so a raindrop will fall faster than a feather, even if they weigh the same amount.

And since the air is denser at sea level than at a mountaintop, an object will fall faster on the mountaintop than at sea level.

Honey is more viscous than water, so a spoon that is dropped will fall slower through the honey.

From these things, it can be seen that some things are so light that the slightest motion of a sufficiently viscous fluid is enough to cause them not to fall at all, creating such a thing as murky water that will not clear. This is called Brownian motion.