Momentum — Unit test

Question 1 • POP Physics 26/27

A scientist on Earth drops a hammer and a feather at the same time an astronaut on the moon drops a hammer and a feather.

Answer

The hammer hits the ground before the feather on both Earth and the moon.

The hammer hits the ground before the feather on Earth, but the feather hits the ground first on the moon.

The hammer and the feather hit the ground together on both Earth and the moon.

The hammer hits the ground before the feather on Earth, and the hammer and feather hit at the same time on the moon.

Explanation

On Earth, air resistance slows the feather much more than the hammer, so the hammer reaches the ground first. The Moon has essentially no atmosphere, so there is no air resistance to make the feather fall more slowly. In a vacuum, objects released together fall at the same rate, so the hammer and feather hit the ground together on the Moon.

AI-written and checked against the verified answer.

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