Drag Force & Terminal Velocity

Why do feathers fall slowly but rocks fall fast? Why do skydivers use parachutes? The answer is all about air resistance and something called terminal velocity!

What You'll Learn:

• 🌬️ How air resistance slows down falling objects
• ⚖️ What happens when drag equals gravity
• 🪂 How parachutes work to slow descent
• 🔴 How to design parachutes for safe landings

Get ready to become a parachute engineer! 🚀

When you drop something, it starts falling faster and faster. But eventually, something amazing happens - it stops speeding up and falls at a constant speed. This is called terminal velocity!

Here's why it happens:

• At first, gravity pulls the object down (making it go faster)
• As it goes faster, air resistance (drag) gets stronger
• Eventually, drag becomes equal to gravity
• When forces are balanced, speed stays constant! ⚖️

Fun fact: A skydiver in free fall reaches about 120 mph, but with a parachute, they slow down to about 12 mph - much safer for landing!

Not all objects fall at the same speed! The shape matters a lot because it affects how much air resistance the object experiences.

Shape and Speed:

• 🟢 Streamlined shapes (like a bullet) - fall very fast, low drag
• 🔵 Round shapes (like a ball) - fall medium speed
• 🟡 Flat shapes (like a piece of paper) - fall slowly, high drag
• 🟣 Parachutes - fall very slowly, maximum drag!

Watch the comparison race to see how different shapes fall at different speeds. The parachute will be the slowest! 🐢

Parachutes are designed to create maximum drag to slow down falling objects safely.

The parachute magic:

• The large canopy catches lots of air
• This creates a huge upward force (drag)
• The drag balances out gravity
• Result: slow, safe descent! 🪂

Deployment sequence:

1. Free fall (falling fast)
2. Pilot chute opens (small parachute)
3. Main canopy inflates (big parachute fills with air)
4. Steady descent (falling slowly and safely)

Watch the deployment animation to see this amazing process in action!