Use the information below and your knowledge of science to answer the three questions that follow. Vehicle 1 Mass = 1,500 kg Velocity = 15 m/s Vehicle 2 Mass = 1,500 kg Velocity = 20 m/s Vehicle 3 Mass = 2,000 kg Velocity = 15 m/s 5. Calculate the amount of force acting on Vehicle 1 if it crashes into a wall and it takes 0.01 seconds for Vehicle 1 to come to a stop upon collision. a. Step 1: Calculate the acceleration of the vehicle as its velocity changes from 15 to 0 m/s in 0.01 seconds. b. Step 2: Apply Newton’s Second Law of Motion to determine the force exerted by the vehicle on the wall during the crash. c. Step 3: Apply Newton’s Third Law of Motion to determine the force exerted by the wall on the vehicle.
a. To calculate the acceleration of Vehicle 1, we can use the formula:
acceleration = (final velocity - initial velocity) / time
Plugging in the values, we get:
acceleration = (0 - 15 m/s) / (0.01 s) = -1500 m/s²
Note that the negative sign indicates that the velocity is decreasing.
b. Newton's Second Law of Motion states that force is equal to mass multiplied by acceleration:
force = mass * acceleration
Plugging in the values, we get:
force = 1500 kg * (-1500 m/s²) = -2,250,000 Newtons
Again, the negative sign indicates that the force is in the opposite direction of the velocity.
c. According to Newton's Third Law of Motion, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Therefore, the force exerted by the wall on the vehicle is equal in magnitude but opposite in direction to the force exerted by the vehicle on the wall. So, the force exerted by the wall on the vehicle is:
force = -2,250,000 Newtons