Question

A) A skydiver jumps out of a plane. After he reaches terminal velocity, he opens his parachute. Of the two forces -the air resistance and gravity acting on the sky diver after the parachute opens, which is greater.
B) Air begin a fluid produces a small buoyant force on the skydiver. How does the buoyant force change after he opens his parachute? why?

Answer 1

Terminal velocity is defined as that velocity which is relative to the fluid when resultant force on the body is zero. When a body is falling from the sky then the air drag slows it down it works as a resistance to the motion of the body.

Complete step by step answer:
It is given in the problem that a skydiver jumps out of a plane after he reaches terminal velocity, he opens his parachute and we need to tell that out of the two forces -the air resistance and gravity acting on the sky diver after the parachute opens, which one is greater also we need to discuss about the buoyant force on the skydiver after the parachute open ups.

As the skydiver opens up the parachute the parachute develops air drag and the skydiver will shift from the original velocity to the less terminal velocity so the answer to the first part of the problem is the greater force is air resistance because the air resistance shifts the skydiver to smaller terminal velocity although there was gravity force acting on the skydiver the whole time.

The buoyancy force on the skydiver will increase as after the parachute opens up the volume has increased but the weight of the skydiver remains the same.

Note: The force acting on the body is always zero when anybody is in terminal velocity and the velocity of the body remains constant. Buoyancy force will try to provide a force on the body and slow down the falling body but as the body reaches the terminal velocity all the forces get balanced.