Momentum Answers
If a motorcycle, a car, and a big rig are all moving with a velocity of 100 km/h, which vehicle has the greatest momentum?
What did you include in your response? Check all that apply.
Two balls, each with a mass of 0.5 kg, collide on a pool table. Is the law of conservation of momentum satisfied in this collision? Explain why or why not.
Yes, the law of conservation of momentum is satisfied. In any closed system where no external forces act, the total momentum before the collision is equal to the total momentum after the collision. While energy may be lost to sound or heat, the momentum is simply transferred between the two balls.
Train car A is at rest when it is hit by train car B. The two cars, which have the same mass, are stuck together and move off after the collision. How does the final velocity of train cars A and B after the collision compare to the initial velocity of train car B before the collision?
An astronaut on a space walk floats a little too far away from the space station. Without air to push against, he cannot paddle back. However, the astronaut is holding a hammer. Explain how the astronaut could use the hammer to move and why this will get him back to the space station.
The astronaut should throw the hammer in the direction opposite to the space station. According to the law of conservation of momentum, the initial momentum of the system (astronaut and hammer) is zero. When the hammer is thrown away from the station, it gains momentum in that direction. To keep the total momentum at zero, the astronaut must gain an equal amount of momentum in the opposite direction, which will push him back toward the space station.
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