Two molten rocks fly directly toward each other in outer space.
One rock has a mass of 883 kilograms and is moving directly toward the Sun at a velocity of 555 meters per second.
The second rock has a mass of 983 kilograms and is moving directly away from the Sun at a velocity of 629 meters per second.
If the two rocks have a completely inelastic collision, what will be the velocity of the resulting rock?
A. 11,083.72 m/s toward from the Sun.
B. 68.73 m/s away from the Sun.
C. 128,242.00 m/s away from the Sun.
momentum is conserved
(m1 * v1) + (m2 * v2) = mf * vf
Given:
M1 = 883 kg, V1 = 555 m/s.
M2 = 983 kg, V2 = -629 m/s.
V3 = velocity of M1 and M2 after collision.
Momentum before = Momentum after.
M1*V1 + M2*V2 = M1*V3 + M2*V3,
883*555 + 983*(-629) = 883*V3 + 983*V3,
-128,242 = 1866V3,
V3 = -68.73 m/s. = 68.73 m/s away from the sun.
Thank you!
Not necessary to do the problem given the three answer choices.
The second rock has bigger mass and bigger speed AWAY so it will win.
The resulting speed must be smaller than 629 m/s
so
B is the answer
Whoever wrote the problem did that on purpose, otherwise would not have given 128,242 m/s choice
To solve this problem, we need to apply the principle of conservation of momentum. The total momentum before the collision is equal to the total momentum after the collision.
First, let's calculate the initial momentum of each rock. The momentum of an object is given by the product of its mass and its velocity.
For the first rock:
Initial momentum = mass * velocity = 883 kg * 555 m/s = 490,965 kg*m/s
For the second rock:
Initial momentum = mass * velocity = 983 kg * (-629 m/s) = -618,407 kg*m/s (Note: we use a negative velocity because the rock is moving away from the Sun)
Now, let's consider the completely inelastic collision where the two rocks stick together after the collision. In an inelastic collision, the two objects combine and move together with a common final velocity.
The total mass after the collision is the sum of the masses of the two rocks: 883 kg + 983 kg = 1866 kg.
Now, let's calculate the total momentum after the collision. We can use the principle of conservation of momentum:
Total momentum before the collision = Total momentum after the collision
490,965 kg*m/s - 618,407 kg*m/s = Total mass after the collision * final velocity
-127,442 kg*m/s = 1866 kg * final velocity
Finally, we can solve for the final velocity:
final velocity = -127,442 kg*m/s / 1866 kg
final velocity ≈ -68.39 m/s (Note: we use a negative sign because the rock is still moving away from the Sun)
Therefore, the correct answer is B. The resulting rock will have a velocity of approximately 68.39 m/s away from the Sun.