Frictional Force and Terminal Velocity

Question 1

what is friction?

Answer 1

Friction is the force acting on a moving object to slow it down or eventually stop it (on surface)

Question 2

what is drag or resistance?

Answer 2

Drag or resistance is the opposite force to the movement (in air)

Question 3

how can you decrease the drag?

Answer 3

Making the object more streamlined will decrease the drag

Question 4

why do objects falling through fluids reach a terminal velocity?

Answer 4

When a falling object first sets off, the force of gravity is much more than the frictional force slowing them down, so they accelerate. As the speed increases the friction builds up. This gradually reduces the acceleration until eventually the frictional force is equal to the accelerating force, so it won’t accelerate anymore therefore it has reached it’s terminal velocity

Question 5

what affects the terminal velocity?

Answer 5

Weight, shape and area