Question

In this vLab you used a complex machine to launch a projectile with the ultimate goal of hitting the target. Assume you built a really big machine that could launch the projectile a "significant" distance; for instance, several hundred miles. Write a brief essay discussing the issues that would need to be accounted for with a projectile with that type of range. Be sure to include those issues affect the range of the projectile.

Answer 1

For a catapult to fire a projectile a significant range, the projectile will need a large mass. The machine would have to be very large to compensate for that. Also, the machine would be highly inaccurate. It would be entirely too difficult to pinpoint the exact location in which the projectile will hit. If you were to use a projectile that had a smaller mass, it would too easily be affected by friction, wind, and other outside forces. The machine used to fire the projectile itself, would have to be large, and it would be very inefficient.