Do Heavier Objects Fall Faster than Lighter Ones?

People commonly have the misconception that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones. They have this misconception because that is what they commonly observe. In the real world there is air resistance. With air resistance this misconception is true. If no air resistance is present, the rate of descent depends only on how far the object has fallen, no matter how heavy the object is. This means that two objects will reach the ground at …

…proving wrong an earlier theory made by Aristotle that a heavier object would fall faster than a light one. At this time most people accepted this theory and weren't open to a change in thinking. He took a musket ball and a cannonball and dropped them from the top of the leaning tower of Pisa. He wanted to show that the two balls of the same weight would hit the ground at the same time.