A baseball is thrown by the center fielder (from shoulder level) to home plate where it is caught (on the fly at eye level) by the catcher. At what point does the magnitude of the vertical component of velocity have its maximum value? (air resistance is negligible)
A) just after leaving the center fielder's hand
B) just before arriving at the catcher's mitt
C) at the top of the trajectory
D) the magnitude of vertical component of velocity is constant

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The vertical component of velocity is maximum just after the ball is thrown because it starts with an initial upward velocity. As the ball rises, gravity slows it down until it reaches the top of its trajectory, where the vertical velocity is zero. Then, as it falls, the vertical velocity increases again in magnitude but in the opposite direction.

A Baseball Is Thrown by the Center Fielder (From Shoulder