Question

There are ants that move through the air by gliding. Ants aren’t very good gliders; a typical ant will glide at a constant speed on a path tipped at 60° below the horizontal. This isn’t a very impressive glide, but it’s enough to get the ant where it needs to go. The air exerts two forces on the ant: lift and drag. The drag force is parallel to the motion; the lift force is perpendicular to the motion. • Sketch a free-body diagram for the motion showing all forces acting. • What is larger, the lift force or the drag force?

Answer 1