Where can I get real projectile data from. I am sure many people need this for modeling projectiles in their games, but as well as data for my game, I have chosen integration as the topic for my GCSE coursework. I need to evaluate my model at the end, but I was unable to find any real projectile data. Thanks in advance.

The easiest way to get real projectile data is to make it yourself. Does your school have a Hunt the Monkey experimental apparatus? (Its a real thing, used for a classic experiment, and many schools have this apparatus available for lab experiments in projectile motion.)

You could also probably find somebody else''s hunt the monkey results online using a search engine.

Graham Rhodes
Principal Scientist
Applied Research Associates, Inc.

Hunt the monkey apparatuses are cool. You could also probably make one yourself relatively easy. I''d do it just because it would be fun

I''ll try searching on the internet for results from this piece of apparatus with a strange-sounding name. Thanks!

... shouted. "I say we go hunt the monkey bastards down and beat the living daylights out of them, and save Megumi!" Ran added. "Then...

Just a sample of what I got when I googled it. Also some Russian animal sex websites?!!?

Can someone give me a link please?

OOPS, ! Probably should add the word "projectile motion" to the search query. Or use "monkey and hunter" instead. Here''s a few proper results that I found:

Monkey and Hunter

Monkey and the Hunter Demo

Monkey and Hunter Apparatus schematic

I''ll note that you can easily generate real projectile motion results using a grid backdrop (graph paper or wallpaper with a grid) and a video camera (even a still digital camera with a low-resolution video mode----or a webcam). Make sure the camera is on a tripod, or at least on a sturdy base. Point it at the backdrop. Start recording. Gently throw an object (such as a small ball) so that its projectile path is clear from the camera. Then once you have the recording, use the video player to step through the frames. At each frame, record the position, x and y, of the object and the corresponding time of the frame. Instance projectile data using hardware that you may very likely already own. The only issue here is that you do not really know the initial speed and angle of the object. You can measure the angle by finding the vector from the position of the object at the first two video frames after you throw it. You can use the closed form projectile motion equations to compute the initial speed back tracking how high it goes before coming back down after you release it. Since air resistence, etc., have little effect on a ball at low speeds, this will give you a quite accurate initial velocity. You can then use the angle and initial velocity to run your simulation. Your simulation results will be different from the measured results, both because of the floating point issues and truncation issues of numerical simulation, and because of measurement error, camera shake, etc. But you should at least be able to get a reasonable result for your coursework.


Graham Rhodes
Principal Scientist
Applied Research Associates, Inc.

Thanks for the reply!