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Which two forces act on a skydiver falling through air, once buoyancy is ignored?
AWeight and the normal force
BDrag and the normal force
CGravity and the drag force
DGravity and static friction
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. Gravity and the drag force
1. Ignoring buoyancy, only two forces act on the falling skydiver.
2. One is the force of gravity, pulling downward, and it stays constant throughout.
3. The other is the drag force from the air, which grows as the speed grows.
4. A normal force needs contact with a surface, and there is no surface in mid air.
_Source: OpenStax College Physics (CC BY 4.0), Ch 5 "Further Applications of Newton's Laws: Friction, Drag, and Elasticity", section 5.2 Drag Forces_
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