answersLogoWhite

0

Without air resistance, heavier and lighter object fall at the same speed. More precisely, they accelerate at the same speed - near Earth's surface that would be 9.8 meters/second2. If air resistance is significant, heavier objects tend to have less air resistance, compared to their weight, so they will usually fall faster.


User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago

What else can I help you with?

Continue Learning about Physics

Why would is it that two objects fall at the same rate?

The best way to answer that question is: Because that's the way gravity works. When you think about it, it's really the only way that makes sense. Let's assume that heavy things fall faster, and light things fall slower. Take a heavy thing and a light thing. Tie them together with 3 feet of string, and drop them from a high building. The light thing wants to fall slower, and it holds the heavy thing back. The heavy thing wants to fall faster, and it pulls the light thing ahead. Together, they fall at some speed faster than the light thing alone, but slower than the heavy thing alone. Bu that's crazy. What difference does it make whether they're tied together with string, stuffed in the same bag together, or hooked together with nuts and bolts ? Together, they're even heavier than the heavier thing, but we just said that they're falling slower than the heavier thing would fall alone. It doesn't add up. Heavier things don't fall faster.


Light colored objects absorb radiation fast or slow?

Light colored objects tend to absorb radiation more slowly compared to dark colored objects. Light colors reflect more light and heat, which leads to slower absorption of radiation. Conversely, dark colored objects absorb more light and heat, causing them to warm up faster.


Does light sink faster or does heavy sink faster?

In a fluid medium, objects sink based on their density relative to the surrounding medium. In general, heavier objects sink faster than lighter objects because they have a greater gravitational force pulling them down. Light itself does not sink as it is not a solid object, but rather a form of electromagnetic radiation.


Is mach 20 faster than light If not how much slower?

No, Mach 20 is not faster than the speed of light. The speed of light is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum, while Mach 20 is roughly 7.35 kilometers per second. Therefore, Mach 20 is significantly slower than the speed of light.


Why do objects all fall at the same time when gravity is the only force acting?

-- Because that's the way gravity behaves. -- Because is would be ridiculous to think that heavy objects fall faster. Here's why: ==> Let's say that heavy objects fall faster and light objects fall slower. ==> Take a piece of sticky tape and stick a light object onto the back of a heavy object. Then drop them together off of a roof. ==> The light object tries to fall slower and holds back, and the heavy object tries to fall faster and pulls forward. So when they're stuck together, they fall at some in-between speed. ==> But wait! When they're stuck together they weigh more than the heavy object alone. So how can a stuck-together object that's heavier than the heavy object alone fall at a speed that's slower than the heavy object alone ? ! ? Isn't that ridiculous ? There's no way that heavy objects can fall faster than light objects.

Related Questions

Discovered that heavier objects fall faster than light ones?

Galileo Galilei found out


What reason might the Greeks have had not to question the evidence that heavier objects fall faster than lighter objects?

The reason that the greeks might not have had any questions to the evidence that hevier objects fall faster than light objects is because they would be questioning statistics which is that heavier objects and lighter objects do not fall at different rates but at the same its just the pending on the weight ex. a brick and a feather you drop a brick it falls quick beacuse of its weight and a feather because of it's weight it falls alot slower but at the measuerment of the objects falling quicker than the other they don't its irrelevent.


Why would is it that two objects fall at the same rate?

The best way to answer that question is: Because that's the way gravity works. When you think about it, it's really the only way that makes sense. Let's assume that heavy things fall faster, and light things fall slower. Take a heavy thing and a light thing. Tie them together with 3 feet of string, and drop them from a high building. The light thing wants to fall slower, and it holds the heavy thing back. The heavy thing wants to fall faster, and it pulls the light thing ahead. Together, they fall at some speed faster than the light thing alone, but slower than the heavy thing alone. Bu that's crazy. What difference does it make whether they're tied together with string, stuffed in the same bag together, or hooked together with nuts and bolts ? Together, they're even heavier than the heavier thing, but we just said that they're falling slower than the heavier thing would fall alone. It doesn't add up. Heavier things don't fall faster.


Does light travel more faster or slower as they enter water?

Slower in water.


Why doesn't a heavy object accelerate more than a light object when both are freely falling?

Here's the answer, and I love it. Let's assume that heavy objects fall fasterand light objects fall slower, just like everybody wants them to.Follow me now . . .-- Heavier objects fall faster. Lighter objects fall slower.-- Take a heavy object and a light object up to the roof of a tall building.Then take a piece of sticky tape, and stick the light object onto the backof the heavy one. Then walk carefully to the edge of the roof, and dropthe package over the side. As you do that, yell down "Look out below!"-- The heavier object normally falls faster, so it tries to pull the package ahead.The lighter object normally falls slower, so it tries to hold the package back. Soas they fight each other, the package falls at some middle speed, slower thanthe heavy object alone, and faster than the lighter object alone.-- But wait! They're taped together. How is that different from being glued together ?Or melted together ? Or welded together ? Or even inside the same skin ?-- Or even being the same single object ? They could just as well be a single object,one that weighs a little more than the original heavier object.-- But we just agreed that the package falls a little slower than the original heavier object,even though it's heavier than the original heavier object.-- Our orignal assumption . . . that a heavy object falls faster than a lght object . . . leads usdown the garden path to a ridiculous result.That assumption must be wrong.Don't ya just love it !


Does light travel faster in glass then it does in a vacuum?

No, slower.


Light colored objects absorb radiation fast or slow?

Light colored objects tend to absorb radiation more slowly compared to dark colored objects. Light colors reflect more light and heat, which leads to slower absorption of radiation. Conversely, dark colored objects absorb more light and heat, causing them to warm up faster.


How can you race the speed of light?

What do you mean, make it faster? In a vacuum, light travels at only one speed. There is no way to make it faster or slower. In other materials, light is usually slower. There are instances where it is actually measured to be faster, but it is generally believed that this can't be used to transfer matter, energy, or information, faster than the speed of light.


Does light sink faster or does heavy sink faster?

In a fluid medium, objects sink based on their density relative to the surrounding medium. In general, heavier objects sink faster than lighter objects because they have a greater gravitational force pulling them down. Light itself does not sink as it is not a solid object, but rather a form of electromagnetic radiation.


Is mach 20 faster than light If not how much slower?

No, Mach 20 is not faster than the speed of light. The speed of light is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum, while Mach 20 is roughly 7.35 kilometers per second. Therefore, Mach 20 is significantly slower than the speed of light.


Is the speed of sound faster or slower than light?

Way slower. For reference, the speed of sound is about 767.3 mph and the speed of light is 671,000,000 mph.


Why do objects all fall at the same time when gravity is the only force acting?

-- Because that's the way gravity behaves. -- Because is would be ridiculous to think that heavy objects fall faster. Here's why: ==> Let's say that heavy objects fall faster and light objects fall slower. ==> Take a piece of sticky tape and stick a light object onto the back of a heavy object. Then drop them together off of a roof. ==> The light object tries to fall slower and holds back, and the heavy object tries to fall faster and pulls forward. So when they're stuck together, they fall at some in-between speed. ==> But wait! When they're stuck together they weigh more than the heavy object alone. So how can a stuck-together object that's heavier than the heavy object alone fall at a speed that's slower than the heavy object alone ? ! ? Isn't that ridiculous ? There's no way that heavy objects can fall faster than light objects.