“Optimization of Projectile Motion Under Air Resistance Quadratic in Speed” by Professor of Mathematics Robert Kantrowitz ’82 and Michael M. Neumann of Mississippi State University was included in the February issue of the Mediterranean Journal of Mathematics.
The article concerns maximizing the lateral displacement of a projectile that is launched from above ground level and subject during flight to the retarding forces of gravity and air resistance that is proportional to the square of the speed. The authors employ a classical approximation model for projectile motion with quadratic drag to address the problem.
The paper also offers a solution to the inverse problem, attributable to Niccolo Fontana Tartaglia (1499-1557) of Brescia, of determining the number of launch angles for the projectile that result in a prescribed range.
