How is projectile motion used in basketball? - Project Sports
Nederlands | English | Deutsch | Türkçe | Tiếng Việt

Project Sports

Questions and answers about sports

How is projectile motion used in basketball?

6 min read

Asked by: Crystal Smith

When a someone throws a basketball toward the hoop, the basketball goes through projectile motion, because it moves along a curved path under the influence of gravity only.

How do you apply projectile motion in basketball?

A basketball relates to a projectile as the force exerted upon the basketball is a push. The basketball is then projected horizontally and vertically, causing, if the proper shooting technique is applied,the basketball to rotate, elevate, and finally swish through the net.

How does projectile motion improve basketball?


So that means we have to convert our feet into meters. So we're going to use the conversion over here 1 meter is approximately equal to 3.28. Feet which means that this distance here 15.

How is projectile motion used in sports?

Real-Life Examples



In real life, the projectile motion finds applications in sports. Playing basketball, football is examples of projectile motion in real life. While throwing a basketball into the basket, the player shoots the ball in such a way that the flight taken by the ball is in the form of a parabola.

What are the examples of sports that exhibits projectile motion basketball?

Basketball: When a basketball is thrown into the basket, the ball Travels a parabolic trajectory and then goes into the basket. Volleyball: In a game of volleyball, the ball follows a parabolic motion from one side of the net to the other, this is a very good example of projectile motion.

What forces act on a basketball player?

There are four forces on a basketball as it flies through the air. You’ve got gravity, pulling the ball down to the Earth, the buoyant force, that’s pushing the ball up, the drag force due to the air that the ball smashes into, opposing the ball’s motion and slowing down.

Why is motion important in basketball?

Whenever the basketball hits anything, that thing pushes the ball back. Because the third law states that the force is equal and opposite, we can know that the ball will return in the direction whence it came and with a nearly equivalent speed. People themselves fall under the power of the laws of motion.

How important is physics in basketball?

Basketballs bounce because of the pressurized air inside of them, gravity and Newton’s Laws of Motion. When you dribble a basketball, your hand and gravity both push the ball towards the ground (Law #1). As it drops, the ball accelerates and speeds up (Law #2).

How is velocity used in basketball?

Velocity is how fast or slow an object is moving in a specific direction. When you go up for a layup, the basketball’s velocity is the same as the sum of your velocity and the ball’s.

How is projectile motion used in baseball?

In projectile motion, the magnitude of the acceleration due to gravity affects the trajectory in a significant way. For example, a baseball or a golf ball would travel much farther and higher on the moon than on the earth, when launched with the same initial velocity.

Is dribbling a projectile motion?

Even when players are dribbling the basketball, they are just hitting it with enough force in the direction they want to go and leaving projectile motion and the elasticity of the ball to have it wind up back where they can…show more content…

Is jumping projectile motion?

As you can probably guess, a dude jumping on a moving trampoline is also an example of projectile motion. For these kinds of motions, the following must be true: The horizontal and vertical motion of the object are independent (except for the total time). The vertical acceleration is constant (at –9.8 m/s2).

How is projectile motion used in volleyball?

Projectile Motion describes the motion of the ball. Whether it’s a serve, set, or dig, a volleyball will always travel in a parabolic motion. This is because the only force that acts on the ball after the ball is given an initial force is gravity assuming that there is no air resistance.

What are examples of projectile motion?

Examples of Projectile Motion

  • Firing a Canon. When a cannonball is fired from a cannon, it does not move along a straight line, instead, it follows a curved path. …
  • Throwing a Basketball in the Basket. …
  • Sneezing. …
  • Javelin Throw. …
  • Archery. …
  • Water Escaping a Hose. …
  • Car and Bike Stunts. …
  • Golf Ball.

How is projectile motion used in javelin?

Projectile motion is a form of motion in which an object (projectile) moves along a parabolic path. Generally, in the javelin throw, three factors (initial velocity V1, initial throw angle θ1 and initial throw height H) play a fundamental role in an athlete’s record.

Is a rocket launch an example of projectile motion?

The pressure inside the rocket pushes the gas or liquid downward; the gas or liquid pushes the rocket up! When something is thrown, shot or launched through the air we call it a projectile.

What is projectile motion in badminton?

Projectile motion is a type of motion where an object (called a projectile) is thrown, and in this situation the object (being the shuttlecock) makes contact with the racket. It moves along a curved path under the force of gravity.

How can the knowledge of projectile motion make us more competitive in sports?

Understanding how projectile motion works is very beneficial in determining how to best propel an object. For the javelin throw, being able to calculate the different variables helps the athlete to develop a better technique for them personally in order to throw the longest distance.

Where do we apply projectile motion?

The applications of projectile motion in physics and engineering are numerous. Some examples include meteors as they enter Earth’s atmosphere, fireworks, and the motion of any ball in sports. Such objects are called projectiles and their path is called a trajectory.

Why is a baseball thrown by a pitcher considered to have projectile motion?

Why is a baseball thrown by a pitcher considered to have projectile motion? It gains a lot of kinetic energy. It has horizontal and vertical motion.

What type of movement is throwing a ball?

Throwing is a whole body activity that commences with drive from the large leg muscles and rotation of the hips, and progresses through segmental rotation of trunk and shoulder girdle. It continues with a “Whip-like” transfer of momentum through elbow extension and through the small muscles of the forearm and hand.

What happens when you throw a ball in the air?

For example, when a ball is thrown up in the air, the ball’s velocity is initially upward. Since gravity pulls the object toward the earth with a constant acceleration g, the magnitude of velocity decreases as the ball approaches maximum height.