Projectile Motion

Have you ever wondered why leaves dance and wiggle in the wind? Or how a bright red ball flies through the air when you throw it? That’s me! I am the secret power in every hop, skip, and jump you take on the playground. I am the reason a scooter glides down the sidewalk and a fast car zooms down the street. I am in the quiet flutter of a butterfly's wings and the big roar of a rocket ship blasting into space. I am everywhere, making things go, stop, and change direction. I am a mystery that makes the world an exciting, moving place. Can you guess who I am?

My name is Motion! For thousands of years, people saw me at work and wondered how I did it. They were very curious about my secrets. Then, one day, a very clever man named Isaac Newton was sitting under a tree, thinking. He watched an apple let go of its branch and fall down, down, down to the ground. That little apple gave him a big idea! He realized I wasn't a mystery, but that I followed special rules. He wrote them down so everyone could understand me. His first rule is that things like to keep doing what they're already doing. A toy car that is stopped will stay stopped until you push it. A ball that is rolling will keep rolling until something stops it. His second rule is simple: a bigger push makes things go faster! If you push a swing gently, it moves a little. If you give it a super big push, it flies high into the air! His third rule is my favorite because it's like a secret handshake. It says that for every push, there is a push back. When you bounce on a trampoline, you push down on it, and it pushes you right back up into the sky!

These rules make me your partner in every adventure. When you kick a soccer ball, you are using my second rule. The harder you kick, the faster I make the ball go! When you push off the ground to ride your scooter, you are using my third rule—you push the ground back, and the ground helps push you forward. And that awesome rocket ship soaring to the stars? It uses that same rule, pushing fire and gas down to make me push the rocket all the way up. Understanding my secrets helps people explore the deepest oceans and travel to the moon. From your own backyard to the faraway stars, I am always there to help you play, create, and go on amazing adventures.