Max Height of Rocket in Free Fall: Solving for a, t1, and g

AI Thread Summary
The discussion revolves around calculating the maximum height of a rocket that accelerates upward with a constant net acceleration until its fuel is exhausted. The correct formula for maximum height is derived as H = (1/2)at1^2, where 'a' is the net acceleration. A participant attempted to use a net acceleration of 3g and a time of 5 seconds but encountered an incorrect result. Clarification was provided that 'net acceleration' should not be adjusted, and the calculated height using the correct values yielded approximately 367.9 meters, suggesting a possible rounding issue. The conversation emphasizes the importance of accurately applying the formula and understanding the concept of net acceleration.
reesejm
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I was given the situation, A rocket, initially at rest on the ground, accelerates straight upward from rest with constant net acceleration a , until time t1, when the fuel is exhausted.

Find the maximum height H that the rocket reaches (neglecting air resistance).
Express the maximum height in terms of a, t1, and/or g . Note that in this problem, g is a positive number equal to the magnitude of the acceleration due to gravity.

I found the equation to be (1/2)a((t_1)^2)*(1+(a/g)) This formulaa is correct. I am having trouble finding the max. height that the rocket will reach. height when the net acceleration is a=3g for t1=5.00s and use g=9.81m/s^2. I tried plugging in a=3g into the equation and got and incorrect answer so i tried 2g, taking g away from the aceleration becuase of gravity downword and as well got it wrong. I am not sure what i am doing wrong
 
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reesejm said:
I was given the situation, A rocket, initially at rest on the ground, accelerates straight upward from rest with constant net acceleration a , until time t1, when the fuel is exhausted.

Find the maximum height H that the rocket reaches (neglecting air resistance).

Hmm, you appear not to understand what 'net acceleration' means. The 'net acceleration' is the total acceleration you don't need to manipulate it any. Ergo, the height the rocket reaches is going to be:
\frac{1}{2}at_1^2
 
with a=3g, i plugged the numbers into \frac{1}{2}at_1^2 and got 367.9m. It said that i was off by a single numerical factor
 
Well, unless you give the numbers, I can't check your math. You might want to check if it's looking for 368 m (because 9.81 has only 3 sig figs...)
 
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