A bus and a car have an inelastic head-on collision. The bus has a mass of 1.5 × 103 kilograms and an initial velocity of +20 meters/second. The car has a mass of 9.5 × 102 kilograms and an initial velocity of -26 meters/second. What is their total momentum after the collision?

just add the two momenta. The total will remain unchanged.

1.5*10^3 * 20 - 9.5*10^2 * 26 = -5.3*10^3 kg-m/s

To find the total momentum after the collision, we need to calculate the momentum of the bus and the car separately, and then add them together.

The momentum of an object can be calculated using the formula:

Momentum = mass × velocity

For the bus:
Mass of the bus (m1) = 1.5 × 10^3 kg
Initial velocity of the bus (v1) = +20 m/s

Momentum of the bus (p1) = m1 × v1
= (1.5 × 10^3 kg) × (20 m/s)
= 30,000 kg·m/s

For the car:
Mass of the car (m2) = 9.5 × 10^2 kg
Initial velocity of the car (v2) = -26 m/s

Momentum of the car (p2) = m2 × v2
= (9.5 × 10^2 kg) × (-26 m/s)
= -24,700 kg·m/s

Now, we can find the total momentum by adding the momentum of the bus and the car together:

Total momentum = p1 + p2
= 30,000 kg·m/s + (-24,700 kg·m/s)
= 5,300 kg·m/s

Therefore, the total momentum after the collision is 5,300 kg·m/s.