"A steel ball is fired horizontally from a gun and another steel ball is dropped at exactly the same time (from the same height as the gun). Which ball will hit the ground first?"

When students are asked this question, they may predict that because the projected steel ball travels a far greater horizontal distance – then a greater period of time will have elapsed before it hits the ground.

The Vertical Acceleration Demonstrator will simulate this scenario and prove to disbelieving students that the time taken for an object to fall to the ground is independent of its horizontal velocity.