The standard American football has a length of approximately 0.279 m, a central diameter of 0.178 m, and a weight of 4.03 N. When the ball is thrown or kicked in a game and is traveling in the direction of its longitudinal axis, the drag coefficient has been found to be approximately 0.055 (Watts and Moore, 2003). The spin imparted to a football can be up to 600 rpm, and a spinning football has a drag coefficient that is 10% less than a non-spinning football. If a kicker kicks the ball to a sufficient height that it attains its terminal velocity before it is caught and the ball travels downward with its longitudinal axis vertical, what is the velocity of the ball when it is caught? If the ball spins at 600 rpm when it is coming down, what is its velocity? Assume standard air.
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