Lesson 3: Relative Motion
Duration of Days: 6
Lesson Objective
Students will be able to construct vector addition models to calculate an object's relative velocity across different inertial frames of reference, mathematically solving for variables in multi-dimensional navigation scenarios (e.g., crosswinds and river currents).
Can an object be moving at 60 miles per hour and completely stationary at the exact same time?
Why do physics problems require us to explicitly state "with respect to the ground" or "with respect to the water"?
How do you mathematically combine the speed of a vehicle with the speed of the medium it is moving through?
Frame of reference
HS-PS2-1: Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.
Transition students from viewing motion as an absolute, fixed value to understanding it as a relational measurement that depends entirely on the observer's frame of reference, while strengthening their 2D vector resolution skills.
Aviation Navigation (Crosswinds): When an airline pilot flies a plane, they cannot simply point the nose of the aircraft directly toward their destination if a heavy crosswind is blowing. The plane's velocity relative to the air (airspeed) combines with the wind's velocity relative to the ground to create the plane's actual track relative to the ground (groundspeed). Pilots use relative velocity vector diagrams to calculate a "wind correction angle," pointing the plane slightly into the wind so that the resultant vector pushes the plane along a straight line toward their destination.
MPS Science Differentiation Strategies
https://tinyurl.com/5n6c24k7
Unit 2 Assessment