Superman! Part 1 In Action Comics #1 (1938), Superman could \"leap tall building

Question

Superman! Part 1 In Action Comics #1 (1938), Superman could "leap tall buildings in a single bound." Initially, Superman was said to have come from a planet with a larger gravity than Earth's gravity and that was the sole source of his "powers." Based on this premise and the fact that in 1938 a tall building was about 40 stories, let's try to answer the following questions about Superman's leaping of tall buildings: a) How long would he be in the air? b) How fast would Superman by launching himself off the ground? c) What acceleration would he have to produce to achieve this launch speed?

Explanation / Answer

One storey is about 15 feet or 4.5 meters.

so, H = 40 x 4.5 = 180 m

at the highest point, v = 0 m/s

use, v2 = u2 - 2gS

u = [2 x 9.8 x 180]1/2 = 59.397 m/s [answer - b]

now use, v = u - gt

0 = 59.397 - 9.8t

=> t = 6.061s [answer - a]

c] acceleration = a = (v-u)/t

here, v = 59.397 m/s and u = 0 m/s

t = time in which the speed reaches v.

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