Ballista physics essay

A spear or rock was loaded onto the ballista, and the release pin was pulled. The tension on the arms pulled them forward, and the spear or rock was propelled forward by the rope in between the arms. The design of the ballista is such that the force applied from the projectile comes from the tension of the twisted ropes.

Physics of Catapults The ballista, or "shield piercer," was first developed by the Greeks using the same principles as a bow and arrow. Its primary use was to, as the name suggests, pierce enemy shields, since normal bows lacked the power to do so.

However, because the counterweight pivots around a much shorter distance, its weight must be much greater than the weight of the payload, to get a high launch velocity. However, increasing the mass of the counterweight beyond a certain point will not help, since the limiting speed of the falling counterweight is free-fall speed.