Question

if a ball is accelerating down through the air with no horizontal motion, what must be true about the net forces acting on the ball? (1 point)
the drag is greater than the gravitational force.
the net force on the ball is directed upward.
the gravitational force is greater than the drag.
the net force on the ball is zero.

Explanation:

According to Newton's second law \(F = ma\), if an object is accelerating, there must be a non - zero net force acting on it. The direction of the net force is the same as the direction of the acceleration. Since the ball is accelerating downwards, the net force is also downwards. The two main forces acting on the ball are the gravitational force (\(F_g\), acting downwards) and the drag force (\(F_d\), acting upwards). For the net force (\(F_{net}=F_g - F_d\)) to be downwards (so that \(a>0\) in the downward direction), \(F_g>F_d\) must be true.

Answer:

The gravitational force is greater than the drag.