A person stands on top of a cliff and throws a ball with a speed of 20 m/s at an angle of 10 degrees from above the horizontal into the sea. What is the height of the cliff to 1 decimal place?

I would begin by instructing them to draw a diagram of the problem. This would be of a cliff, labelled height sy, with an arrow representing the ball being thrown from the top. This should be labelled with the velocity and angle of projection. I would then instruct them to choose a direction for the vertical and horizontal and thus split the problem into the two planes. Then, I would advise they write down what they know in terms of the variables of motion (i.e. x/y initial/final velocity, displacement, time, acceleration) which, in this case, is uy = 20sin10, ux=20cos10, ay=-9.8 ms-2 and tf=3s. Then, I would advise that they consider what variable they are looking for (sy) and to find the appropriate equation of motion that includes variables that we know or can calculate. Thus, they should find that the useful e.o.m. is s=ut+1/2at2 and thus obtain the final answer of 33.7m.

AC
Answered by Archie C. Physics tutor

2142 Views

See similar Physics A Level tutors

Related Physics A Level answers

All answers ▸

Single electrons travelling at 550 ms^-1 are passed through a diffraction grating with a spacing between the slits of 2.5 micrometers. What would the angle between the zeroth and first maximum of the resulting interference pattern be?


I have an infinite number of glass blocks stacked side by side. The first block has refractive index n1, the second n2 and so on, such that n1<n2...<n(infinity). I shine a light on the stack, what angle does the ray make to the normal on the last block?


What are the similarities and differences between gravitational and electric fields?


In a fluorescent tube, how are the atoms in the tube excited?


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