One Dimensional Hot Air Balloon Kinematics

AI Thread Summary
A hot-air balloon rises at a constant rate of 2.3 m/s while a passenger's friend tosses a camera upward with an initial speed of 12 m/s from the ground. The equations for the camera and balloon's heights are set equal to find when they meet. After applying the quadratic formula, the time values calculated were approximately 0.305 seconds and 1.67 seconds, leading to a height of 3.2 meters for the camera. Despite the calculations appearing correct, the homework submission was marked incorrect, prompting the student to consider consulting their teacher for clarification. The discussion highlights the complexities of one-dimensional kinematics in solving real-world problems.
Flippit
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Homework Statement


A hot-air balloon has just lifted off and is rising at the constant rate of 2.3 m/s. Suddenly one of the passengers realizes she has left her camera on the ground. A friend picks it up and tosses it straight upward with an initial speed of 12 m/s. If the passenger is 2.5m above her friend when the camera is tossed, how high is she when the camera reaches her?

Homework Equations



One-Dimensional Kinematics

The Attempt at a Solution



First I tried setting the distances of the balloon and the camera equal to each other,

camera: 12t+.5*-9.81t^2
balloon: 2.3t+2.5

12t+.5*-9.81t^2=2.3t+2.5

then I rearranged the equation

12t-4.905t^2-2.3t=2.5
9.7t-4.905t^2-2.5=0
-4.905t^2+9.7t-2.5=0

Next, I plugged the equation into the quadratic formula.

t= -9.7+-sqrt 9.7^2-4.905*-2.5/2*-4.905
t= -9.7+-sqrt 94.09+19.62*-2.5/-9.81
t= -9.7+-sqrt 94.09-49.05/-9.81
t= -9.7+-sqrt 45.04/9.81
t= -9.7+-6.71/9.81
t= .305, 1.67

next, I plugged the t value into the formula x= Xi + Vi*t + .5at^2
x= 0 + 12*.305 + .5*-9.81*.305^2
x= 3.66-4.905*.093
x= 3.66 -.456
x= 3.2m

I entered this into the website we turn our homework into, but it said the answer was incorrect, I'm not really sure what I did wrong, all my math seems correct.
 
Last edited:
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Welcome to PF!

Hi Flippit! Welcome to PF! :smile:

(try using the X2 tag just above the Reply box :wink:)
Flippit said:
x= 3.2m

I entered this into the website we turn our homework into, but it said the answer was incorrect, I'm not really sure what I did wrong, all my math seems correct.

Looks ok to me. :confused:

(except I would have used the 2.3t+2.5 equation at the end, instead of the quadratic :wink:)
 
Alright, I guess I'll just have to talk to my teacher about it. Thanks for looking it over!
 
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