PHY 101L Module Four Lab Report Gravity with
Complete Verified Solutions
Name: Courtnie Talso
Date: 6/2/24
Complete this lab report by replacing the bracketed text with the relevant information.
Overview
Gravity is the force that pulls everything on or near Earth down toward the center of the Earth. As
objects fall, they tend to accelerate in response to gravity. In this investigation, you’ll explore whether
the mass and the distance an object falls affect its rate of acceleration.
Safety
Read all instructions for this laboratory activity before beginning. Follow the instructions closely and
observe established laboratory safety practices.
Safety goggles should be worn during this lab. The activities in this lab involve dropping spheres that
accelerate and bounce. Take care while performing these lab activities to avoid injuring hands, fingers,
feet, and toes with moving or falling masses. Make sure the lab area is clear of pets, children, and
breakable objects.
Do not eat, drink, or chew gum while performing this activity. Wash your hands with soap and water
before and after performing the activity. Clean up the work area with soap and water after completing
the investigation. Keep pets and children away from lab materials and equipment.
Time Requirements
Preparation: 15 minutes
Experiment: 60 minutes
Materials Needed From the Lab Kit
Tape measure
Steel sphere
Acrylic sphere
A sphere of similar size as the steel/acrylic sphere made out of clay
Pocket scale
Materials Needed but Not Supplied in the Lab Kit
Stopwatch
Calculator
Erasable pencil or tape for height markers
Procedure
1. Before performing this experiment, develop two scientific hypotheses:
a. First hypothesis: how mass will affect the acceleration of the sphere
b. Second hypothesis: how height will affect the acceleration of the sphere
2. Document these hypotheses in your response to the first question in your gravity lab report
, below. Support each of these hypotheses with explanation and reasoning to support your prediction.
3. Use the tape measure to mark every 0.5 meters on a wall, up to 2.5 meters. This can be
done with an erasable pencil mark or a small piece of tape.
4. Select the steel sphere from your kit and measure its mass using the pocket scale. Record
the sphere’s mass on the chart below.
5. Using the stopwatch, time each fall as you drop the steel sphere from each of the measured
marks, starting at 0.5 m and ending at 2.5 m. For each drop, start the timer upon releasing
the sphere. Stop the timer when the sphere hits the ground. Record each fall time on the
chart below. Repeat this process two more times for a total of three times at each drop
height. Calculate the average fall time for each drop height.
6. Repeat the procedures described in Steps 4 and 5 for the acrylic and clay spheres.
7. Create a graph of height versus average time for your data. Represent time on the x-axis
(the horizontal line) and height on the y-axis (the vertical line).
8. For each of the heights, calculate the acceleration of the sphere using the average fall time.
The following formula may be helpful, but you’re welcome to use different physics principles if
preferred:
Height = initial velocity x time + ½ acceleration x time2
Note that in this experiment, initial velocity is zero, because the sphere is dropped from rest. If we
use an initial velocity = 0 and solve for acceleration in terms of height and time, we get:
Acceleration = (2 x height)/ time2
9. Create a graph of acceleration (using the data collected from the height of 2.0 meters for each
sphere) and the masses for each of the three spheres. Mass should be represented on the x-
axis (the horizontal line) and acceleration should be represented on the y-axis (the vertical line).
Data for the steel sphere: Mass =
67.4 g
Table 1
Height (m) Time (s) Time (s) Time(s) Avg Time (s) Calculated Acceleration
(m/s/s)
0.5 0.30 0.28 0.28 0.29 11.89
1.0 0.47 0.48 0.47 0.47 9.05
1.5 0.52 0.54 0.54 0.53 10.68
2.0 0.54 0.60 0.60 0.58 11.89
2.5 0.61 0.62 0.60 0.61 13.44
Complete Verified Solutions
Name: Courtnie Talso
Date: 6/2/24
Complete this lab report by replacing the bracketed text with the relevant information.
Overview
Gravity is the force that pulls everything on or near Earth down toward the center of the Earth. As
objects fall, they tend to accelerate in response to gravity. In this investigation, you’ll explore whether
the mass and the distance an object falls affect its rate of acceleration.
Safety
Read all instructions for this laboratory activity before beginning. Follow the instructions closely and
observe established laboratory safety practices.
Safety goggles should be worn during this lab. The activities in this lab involve dropping spheres that
accelerate and bounce. Take care while performing these lab activities to avoid injuring hands, fingers,
feet, and toes with moving or falling masses. Make sure the lab area is clear of pets, children, and
breakable objects.
Do not eat, drink, or chew gum while performing this activity. Wash your hands with soap and water
before and after performing the activity. Clean up the work area with soap and water after completing
the investigation. Keep pets and children away from lab materials and equipment.
Time Requirements
Preparation: 15 minutes
Experiment: 60 minutes
Materials Needed From the Lab Kit
Tape measure
Steel sphere
Acrylic sphere
A sphere of similar size as the steel/acrylic sphere made out of clay
Pocket scale
Materials Needed but Not Supplied in the Lab Kit
Stopwatch
Calculator
Erasable pencil or tape for height markers
Procedure
1. Before performing this experiment, develop two scientific hypotheses:
a. First hypothesis: how mass will affect the acceleration of the sphere
b. Second hypothesis: how height will affect the acceleration of the sphere
2. Document these hypotheses in your response to the first question in your gravity lab report
, below. Support each of these hypotheses with explanation and reasoning to support your prediction.
3. Use the tape measure to mark every 0.5 meters on a wall, up to 2.5 meters. This can be
done with an erasable pencil mark or a small piece of tape.
4. Select the steel sphere from your kit and measure its mass using the pocket scale. Record
the sphere’s mass on the chart below.
5. Using the stopwatch, time each fall as you drop the steel sphere from each of the measured
marks, starting at 0.5 m and ending at 2.5 m. For each drop, start the timer upon releasing
the sphere. Stop the timer when the sphere hits the ground. Record each fall time on the
chart below. Repeat this process two more times for a total of three times at each drop
height. Calculate the average fall time for each drop height.
6. Repeat the procedures described in Steps 4 and 5 for the acrylic and clay spheres.
7. Create a graph of height versus average time for your data. Represent time on the x-axis
(the horizontal line) and height on the y-axis (the vertical line).
8. For each of the heights, calculate the acceleration of the sphere using the average fall time.
The following formula may be helpful, but you’re welcome to use different physics principles if
preferred:
Height = initial velocity x time + ½ acceleration x time2
Note that in this experiment, initial velocity is zero, because the sphere is dropped from rest. If we
use an initial velocity = 0 and solve for acceleration in terms of height and time, we get:
Acceleration = (2 x height)/ time2
9. Create a graph of acceleration (using the data collected from the height of 2.0 meters for each
sphere) and the masses for each of the three spheres. Mass should be represented on the x-
axis (the horizontal line) and acceleration should be represented on the y-axis (the vertical line).
Data for the steel sphere: Mass =
67.4 g
Table 1
Height (m) Time (s) Time (s) Time(s) Avg Time (s) Calculated Acceleration
(m/s/s)
0.5 0.30 0.28 0.28 0.29 11.89
1.0 0.47 0.48 0.47 0.47 9.05
1.5 0.52 0.54 0.54 0.53 10.68
2.0 0.54 0.60 0.60 0.58 11.89
2.5 0.61 0.62 0.60 0.61 13.44
