Projectile Motion in Midair Using Simple Analytical Approximations

Abstract

The study of the motion of a projectile, thrown at an angle to the horizon, is a wonderful classical problem. This issue has been the subject of great interest to investigators for centuries. Currently, the study of parabolic motion, in the absence of any drag force, is a common example in introductory physics courses. The theory of parabolic motion allows you to analytically determine the trajectory and all important characteristics of the movement of the projectile. Introduction of air resistance forces into the study of the motion, however, complicates the problem and makes it difficult to obtain analytical solutions. This especially applies to the movement of the projectile, subjected to quadratic air drag force. Numerical studies of projectile motion with quadratic dependence on projectile speed have been performed in many works. From an educational point of view, many students are not confident with numerical methods and gain little insight from using them. So the description of the projectile motion by means of simple approximate analytical formulas under air resistance has great methodological and educational importance. The main goal of this work is to give analytical approximations for the projectile trajectory and movement characteristics as simple as possible from a technical point of view, in order to be grasped even by first-year undergraduates.