Question

A robotic submersible is being lowered into the water. What happens to the buoyant force as the submersible enters the water? Write 2 - 3 sentences explaining your reasoning.

Answer 1

Answer:

The buoyant force increases as the submersible enters the water, and it remains constant after the submersible is completely immersed.

Explanation:

The buoyant force acting on an object is given by:

$B=\rho_L V_{imm} g$

where

$\rho_L$ is the density of the liquid

$V_{imm}$ is the volume of the object immersed in the liquid

g is the gravitational acceleration

From the formula, we see that as $V_{imm}$ increases, the buoyant force increases as well. Therefore, as the submersible is lowered into the water, the buoyant force gradually increases (because the immersed volume increases); however, when the submersible is completely immersed, $V_{imm}$ no longer changes, so the buoyant force remains constant.