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About LinkBacksA 1200 kg car traveling north at 10 m/s is rear-ended by a 2000 kg truck traveling at 31 m/s. What is the total momentum before and after the collision?
before collision_______
after collision___________
Who said physics was easy online.
A 1200 kg car traveling north at 10 m/s is rear-ended by a 2000 kg truck traveling at 31 m/s. What is the total momentum before and after the collision?
before collision_______
after collision___________
Who said physics was easy online.
Prior to the collision, can you find the magnitude of the momentum of the car?
Of the truck?
Now what about their directions, hence their momentum? (Remember that momentum is a vector!)
So what was the total momentum (= momentum car plus momentum truck) prior to the collision? (Again, remember that momentum is a vector!)
If you know the total momentum prior to the collision, what can you say about it after the collision?
No numbers are needed. The net external force on the car and the truck system is 0 N. What can we say about the total momentum in this case? (Hint: The concept here is one that you will almost always use for problems dealing with total momentum.)Originally Posted by Louisana1
-Dan
I'll do a piece to get you started.
The magnitude of the momentum of the truck is mass times velocity = (2000 kg)(31 m/s) = 62,000 kg m / s.
The truck's direction of motion?
Since the truck rear-ended the car, the truck was moving in the same direction as the car. Since the car was travelling north, so was the truck.
Therefore the truck's momentum (a vector!) prior to the collision was 62,000 kg m / s due north.
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