How Do You Calculate the Launch Power to Hit a Moving Target?

AI Thread Summary
To calculate the launch power needed to hit a moving target with a projectile, the projectile's launch angle and the target's distance and speed are crucial. The target is at a fixed ground level and moves away at a constant speed, requiring the projectile to be launched at a specific angle to ensure a collision. The time of collision is determined by the distance to the target divided by the difference in speeds of the projectile and the target. The equations derived show that the launch speed can be expressed in terms of gravitational acceleration, distance, and the angle of launch. Ultimately, the final equation for the launch speed is v=(v2/cos(a) + SQRT((-v2/cos(a))^2 + 4*(g*d/sin(2a))))/2.
Luke
I'm asking if you know the equation to hit a moving target with a projectile.

the canon, or where the projectile is launched from is 0,0
the target is at d,0
the target is moving away at a speed of vx2,0
Note: the target is always going to be at ground level, 0, and only has a constant x speed.
the canon it pointing at an angle of a
the question now, is to solve for the power of the cannon, v.
y = projectile y value
vy1 = y velocity of projectile
basic projectile physics:
y = vy1*t - (1/2)*g*t^2
so when y is the height of the target:
0 = vy1*t - (1/2)*g*t^2 so...
vy1*t = (1/2)*g*t^2 and...
vy1 = g*t/2 so that is the y velocity the projectile need to be launched at in order to land in time t.

since time is distance over rate, the time of collision is t = d/(vx1 - vx2)

so time of collision with ground need to equal time of collision with target.
So substitute t = d/(vx1 - vx2) with vy1 = g*t/2
and you get:
vy1 = g*d/(2*(vx1 - vx2))
Note: if vx1=vx2 then vx1-vx2=0 and then the denominator is zero, so they would never collide.
And we can find the launch speed and angle of the projectile:
vx1=v*cos(a)
vy1=v*sin(a)
v=sqrt(vx1^2 + vy1^2)
so
v*sin(a) = g*d/(2*(v*cos(a) - vx2))
so v = g*d/(2*(v*cos(a) - vx2))/sin(a)

but there is still a v on the right, could someone help me here in solving for v?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Physics news on Phys.org
After a couple hours, I figured it out, so I guess I didn't need help afterall. Incase you wanted to know the equation after reading the above post, it is:
v=(v2/cos(a) + SQRT((-v2/cos(a))^2 + 4*(g*d/sin(2a))))/2
 
The rope is tied into the person (the load of 200 pounds) and the rope goes up from the person to a fixed pulley and back down to his hands. He hauls the rope to suspend himself in the air. What is the mechanical advantage of the system? The person will indeed only have to lift half of his body weight (roughly 100 pounds) because he now lessened the load by that same amount. This APPEARS to be a 2:1 because he can hold himself with half the force, but my question is: is that mechanical...
Hello everyone, Consider the problem in which a car is told to travel at 30 km/h for L kilometers and then at 60 km/h for another L kilometers. Next, you are asked to determine the average speed. My question is: although we know that the average speed in this case is the harmonic mean of the two speeds, is it also possible to state that the average speed over this 2L-kilometer stretch can be obtained as a weighted average of the two speeds? Best regards, DaTario
Some physics textbook writer told me that Newton's first law applies only on bodies that feel no interactions at all. He said that if a body is on rest or moves in constant velocity, there is no external force acting on it. But I have heard another form of the law that says the net force acting on a body must be zero. This means there is interactions involved after all. So which one is correct?
Back
Top