Terminal Velocity

Falling at a steady speed

An interactive lesson with 7 steps, about 6 minutes: you predict, drag and solve, with instant feedback on every answer. It runs in your browser and needs JavaScript.

What you’ll learn

• Terminal velocity: drag equals weight, $v_t = \sqrt{2mg/(\rho C_D A)}$.
• Skydivers reach about 55 m/s belly-first. Parachutes cut that to about 5 m/s.
• $v_t \propto \sqrt{m/A}$: small animals fall slowly.

Steps

1. When drag catches up
2. Skydiving
3. Heavier divers
4. Terminal speed
5. How a parachute works
6. A whole jump
7. Falling mice