Question

If a single feather were dropped from a height of 3 m, would its fall have projectile motion?

Answer 1

See below.

Explanation:

No mainly due to aerodynamic effects. The ratio

`gamma` = (exposed surface)/(weight)

is a main parameter. Under normal atmospheric conditions, with low `gamma`, the free fall behavior is the ballistic one.

Answer 2

Yes and No... See below

Explanation:

1. No, if there is no air...
The velocity of any object in free fall is not affected by its mass. It would just fall straight down.

This video demonstrates that really nicely.

2. Yes, if there is air... (a lot of em' )
This is because the air molecules causes upward force (called air-resistance or drag) that opposes the motion of the feather, thus making it slow down and wiggle a bit.

Answer 3

That could be argued both ways.

Explanation:

The word "projectile" typically implies that something is projected up into the air. In military use, it would be projected at some angle to vertical so that it did not fall back upon the artillery crew that fired it. So dropping an object violates both of those typical meanings of the word.

Others could say that this is merely a special case of projectile motion and that the formulas manage this case correctly. Detailed projectile motion analysis considers air drag, so the case of a falling feather is merely an extreme case.

So if required to answer yes or no, I would say yes.

I hope this helps,
Steve