In some SUVAT questions, they ask for 2 time solutions and I can only find 1. What am I missing?

Let's say we are trying to work out how long it will take for a ball to be caught after it has been thrown straight upwards. If we set the final displacement to be zero (S=0) and solve S=UT+0.5AT2, it appears that we only get one value for T. However, there will always be a step in your workings when you can cancel a T from both sides of the equation, for example: 5T2 = 100T can be simplified to 5T = 100. In this step, we miss out a solution that T=0! This corresponds to when the ball is just about to be thrown so is still in our hands (hence we have a solution for zero displacement!)

CI
Answered by Christopher I. Physics tutor

3633 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

A small ball is projected with speed 15 m/s at an angle of 60 degrees above the horizontal. Find the distance from the point of projection of the ball at the instant when it is travelling horizontally.


Describe how the strong nuclear force between nucleons varies with seperation of the nucleons.


Calculate the threshold frequency for a metal with a work function of 3eV


By considering Newton's second law and his law of gravitation, derive an expression for gravitational field strength g in terms of its mass, m, the distance from its center of mass, r, and the gravitational constant, G.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning