Two-dimensional (2D) motion means motion that takes place in two different directions (or coordinates) at the same time. The simplest motion would be an object moving linearly in one dimension. An example of linear movement would be a car moving along a straight road or a ball thrown straight up from the ground.
If an object is moving in one direction with a constant velocity while accelerating in another direction, calculating the motion is more complicated. An example of 2D movement would be throwing a football or hitting a home run in baseball. In the following examples in this chapter, motion in the Earth’s gravitational field is explored.
This free sample also includes the Table of Contents, Introduction, and Index.