Question

A person is standing in an elevator. In which situation he finds his weight less?

• A. When the elevator moves upward with constant acceleration
• B. When the elevator moves downward with constant acceleration
• C. When the elevator moves upward with uniform velocity
• D. When the elevator moves downward with uniform velocity

Answer 1

Answer: (B)

Acceleration due to gravity always acts in the downward direction.
When elevator is moving downward with constant acceleration i.e., when resultant acceleration is downward then
$W=m(g-a)$
is the resultant weight, which is less than the original weight $m g$. Therefore, person finds his weightless.