The Physics of Spiking a Volleyball
What is a spike?
An overhead, forceful hit of the ball to an opponents side in order to make it difficult to return
The Physics of a Spike
When spiking the ball, you want to apply a very large impulse to the ball so that the ball will have a very large velocity when it is hit to the other side. You want to make the ball’s contact with your hand as long as possible. The more time your hand is in contact with the ball, the faster velocity you will give it. The reason you would follow through is so that you can maximize the time your hand has contact with the ball. This is true when looking at the equations:
F*(delta)t = Impulse,
M*(delta)v = momentum F*(delta)t = M*(delta)v.
The equations show that momentum = impulse, therefore the greater impulse you give the ball the greater momentum the ball will have, which will cause it to have a faster velocity.
When your arm approaches the ball for a spike you want to obtain a large momentum so that you can have a large impulse on the ball, This will cause the ball to have a fast velocity when it approaches your opponent. Therefore, to increase your momentum (momentum=m*(delta)v), since you can’t change your mass, you must increase your velocity. Once you have increased you momentum the impulse you have when smacking the ball will increase and your spike will fly very fast.
An overhead, forceful hit of the ball to an opponents side in order to make it difficult to return
The Physics of a Spike
When spiking the ball, you want to apply a very large impulse to the ball so that the ball will have a very large velocity when it is hit to the other side. You want to make the ball’s contact with your hand as long as possible. The more time your hand is in contact with the ball, the faster velocity you will give it. The reason you would follow through is so that you can maximize the time your hand has contact with the ball. This is true when looking at the equations:
F*(delta)t = Impulse,
M*(delta)v = momentum F*(delta)t = M*(delta)v.
The equations show that momentum = impulse, therefore the greater impulse you give the ball the greater momentum the ball will have, which will cause it to have a faster velocity.
When your arm approaches the ball for a spike you want to obtain a large momentum so that you can have a large impulse on the ball, This will cause the ball to have a fast velocity when it approaches your opponent. Therefore, to increase your momentum (momentum=m*(delta)v), since you can’t change your mass, you must increase your velocity. Once you have increased you momentum the impulse you have when smacking the ball will increase and your spike will fly very fast.