Inelastic collisions: Another ballistic pendulum.

Inelastic collisions: Another ballistic pendulum. Using the Ballistic Pendulum Apparatus: 1] The metal rod of the spring loaded firing mechanism is cocked. The metal ball (with hole) is mounted on the end of the cocked rod. Squeezing the trigger launches the ball into the Cup. 2] The ball, cup and rod swing up and latch at the highest part (h) of the swing (a pawl catches in a ratchet). 3] Initial Velocity of the ball can be calculated using conservation of angular momentum and conservation of energy. If the mass of the rod is negligible: Mass M of ball: 69.2 gm Mass M of cup: 244.3 gm (The mass of the rod, 41.5 gm, causes initial velocities calculated from this formula to be about 5.9 % low.) v = (M1 +M2)/M1(2gh)^(1/2)