Physics of a Gun
A gun has many parts and components to it, but the most necessary parts are the firing pin, the bullet, and obviously, the barrel.
Components of a Gun
This is a firing pin.
The firing pin (see image to left) is a pin that strikes the bullet with intense force, this causes a spark which causes the charge to detonate, this pin has multiple instenses of energies such as KEm from the actual movement of the device, PEel from the compression of the spring, and KEth from the spark produced.
A big part of firing long distances with a gun is the drop, drop is gravity's (Potential Energy Gravity) effect on the bullet, as the bullet travels it gradually will go down at an angle, even if you are a few inches high or low it could mean you missed a chance to bag a buck. The equation for bullet drop is called the Rifleman's rule and it is Rh=Rscos(α)
Bullet Drop Sim: http://www.kongregate.com/games/Plumpman/the-gun-game (Click on the link above and hit start in the bottom right-hand corner when it's done loading. Thin click warm up in the upper left hand corner to begin.) |
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The ammunition is the pressure source and the projectile for the weapon, the firing pin strikes the the bullet and ignites the primer which sets off the powder charge. The explosion from the powder charge causes an immense pressure in the chamber which sends the bullet screaming out of the barrel. The energies created in this process are PEc from the gun powder ignition, KEt also from the ignition and KEm from the actual movement of the bullet.
The barrel of the gun turns it from noisy firecracker to deadly precise weapon, without a barrel you would be blind firing, the barrel gives accuracy to the bullet by acting kind of like a "funnel", pointing the bullet in the right direction. Grooves inside the barrel known as "rifling" cause the bullet to spin making it more accurate, spin is know to make things more accurate, this can be seen in guns but also in a football player's throw. |
Deeper explanation of bullet drop and velocity:
http://www.worsleyschool.net/science/files/bullet/trajectory.html