Crime
How dangerous is a falling bullet shot in the air?
When a gun is shot in the air, the bullet travels straight up into the sky and it will keep moving up until the initial kinetic energy of the bullet is exhausted as a result of air resistance and gravity then it attains its maximum height.
It should be noted that when a gun is shot at an angle that is less than vertical, it is more dangerous when falling because the bullet maintains the angular ballistic trajectory and the chances of its engaging in a tumbling motion is less, which makes it travel at a speed that is higher than a bullet that is in a free fall.
The average speed of a bullet that can penetrate the skin is a bullet moving at 136 miles per hour, however, it should be noted that the type of bullet and the thickness of the skin might cause the bullet to bounce off a person skin at a speed of 225 miles per hour.
Furthermore, various calibres and sizes of bullets can penetrate the skin easily, for instance, buckshot will penetrate the skin at a speed of 145 miles per hour while a bullet from a .38 calibre revolver will penetrate the skin at a speed of 130 miles per hour.