Water and Air Resistance

Water & Air Resistance

Year 7 Physics

Multiple Choice

What is friction?

• Friction is the energy produced when two surfaces collide.
• Friction is the force that increases the motion when two surfaces come in contact.

• Friction is the temperature at which materials begin to melt.
• Friction is the force that opposes motion when two surfaces come in contact.

Water Resistance

When an object moves through water, the surface of the object and the water molecules touch, creating friction, slowing the object's motion down.

This special type of friction is called water resistance.

Swimmers wear swimming caps to reduce the water resistance.
Maximising their speed.

Hotspot

Select the arrow that would represent the gravitational force on the boat.

Hotspot

Select the arrow that would represent the water resistance force on the boat.

Air Resistance

When an object moves through air, the surface of the object and the gas molecules in air touch, creating friction, slowing the object's motion down.

This special type of friction is called air resistance.

Multiple Choice

When a sky-diver is falling, gravity pulls them towards Earth. Which arrow would represent air resistance acting on the sky-diver in the diagram?

• Force A

• Force B

Falling Speed

The more surface area an object has, the more air resistance it will experience.
This means that an object with more surface area will take longer to fall, due to experiencing more air resistance.

Parachutes are used to increase air resistance, slowing down free fall.

Multiple Choice

What is air resistance?

• A force that pushes objects upwards.

• A force that slows down objects moving through air.

• A force that helps objects move faster.

• A force that makes objects float.

Multiple Choice

What happens to an object’s speed when air resistance and the force of gravity are balanced?

• The object's speed increases.
• The object's speed decreases.
• The object's speed remains constant.
• The object comes to a stop.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following best describes water resistance?

• A force that helps objects float in water.

• A force that pushes objects through the water.

• A force that pulls objects underwater.

• A force that slows down objects moving through water.

Multiple Choice

If a boat is moving through water, what will happen if the water resistance increases?

• The boat will slow down.
• The boat will change direction.
• The boat will float higher in the water.
• The boat will speed up.