Finding the acceleration due to gravity

Patricio Jose H. Najeal

The objective of the research is to determine through experimentation the acceleration due to gravity
alone. The net acceleration was determined to be higher than the acceleration due to gravity at sea level
in a vacuum, which is 9.8 m/s. The higher net acceleration can be attributed to the other kinds of forces
acting upon the metal sphere, most notably the surrounding air in the test setup. The findings in the
research has failed to answer the value for the acceleration acting on the object due to gravity alone. The
researcher recommends more remote setups in future research so as to isolate gravity as the only force
acting on the object. The researcher also recommends to perform trials in more varied setups.
Introduction Conclusion

In classical kinematics, acceleration is the rate at
which the velocity of an object changes over time1.
The acceleration of the object is dependent on the
forces acting upon it, implying that multiple forces
acting upon an object affect the net acceleration of
an object. The purpose of this research is to find the
acceleration acting on an object due to gravity alone.
The findings in the research has failed to answer the
value for the acceleration acting on the object due to
gravity alone. The researcher recommends more
remote setups in future research so as to isolate
gravity as the only force acting on the object. The
researcher also recommends to perform trials in
more varied setups.

Methodology References

A metal sphere was dropped for a distance of 0.75
meters, which is slightly above a PASCO photogate
from the PASCO sensor that was provided for use
with the photogate. In dropping the mass, the
researcher made sure to pass the mass though the
photogate with the purpose of measuring the time it
takes for the mass to hit the sensor below starting
from the point in time the photogate senses the
sphere passing through. The procedure was repeated
10 times. The mass of the metal sphere and its
dimensions were not measured.
1. Giancoli, Douglas C. Physics: principles with
applications. (2015)
Acknowledgements
The researcher expresses their sincere appreciation
for the Philippine Science High School - Central
Visayas Campus for supporting this research and for
allowing me to use the facilities for data gathering,
and the adviser of the Experimental Physics
Elective, Mr. Benito A. Baje.

Data Analysis

The net acceleration of the metal sphere was

determined by Equation (1)
1
𝑦 − 𝑦0 = 𝑣0 𝑡 + 𝑎𝑡 2 Equation (1)
2

The average fall time of the object over different

trials was determined and used as a value of t.

Results and Discussions

Table 1: Object fall time in seconds for their respective
trials as well as the average time for all trials.

Object Fall Time (s)

Trial 1 0.36
Trial 2 0.36
Trial 3 0.36
Trial 4 0.36
Trial 5 0.34
Trial 6 0.35
Trial 7 0.37
Trial 8 0.40
Trial 9 0.38
Trial 10 0.37
Average 0.37

Using the average value of fall time which is 0.37

seconds, the net acceleration was determined as 11
m/s2, which is higher than the acceleration due to
gravity at sea level in a vacuum, which is 9.8 m/s2 1.
The higher net acceleration can be attributed to the
other kinds of forces acting upon the metal sphere,
most notably the surrounding air in the test setup.