Re: How is terminal velocity of a parachute affected by its diameter and load

There are two independent variables in your problem: the load and the parachute size. There is one measurable result: the terminal velocity.

If I were doing this experiment I would make up several parachutes and several loads. After a reasonable falling time the parachute+load will reach terminal velocity, so your task then is to determine that velocity. If you could arrange to have someone with a telephone or 2-way radio helping you at a measured height above the ground (in a building, for instance) they could alert someone with a timer when the parachute+load is at their altitude. The timer could stop when the system reaches the ground.

Other ways to measure the velocity might be:
laser speedometer, or
triangulation with theodolites, or
laser rangefinder and timer.

John Link, MadSci Physicist