During qualifying heats for the Molson Indy, a
car must complete a 2.88-km lap in 65 s. If the
car goes 60 m/s for the first half of the lap, what
must be its minimum speed for the second half
to still qualify?
To find the minimum speed for the second half of the lap, we need to find the minimum time it would take for the car to complete the second half.
The total time taken to complete the lap is given as 65 s.
Since the car goes at a speed of 60 m/s for the first half of the lap, the distance covered in the first half is:
Distance = speed * time = 60 m/s * 65 s = 3900 m
Since the total lap distance is 2.88 km or 2880 m, the distance remaining for the second half is:
Distance remaining = Total distance - Distance covered in first half = 2880 m - 3900 m = -1020 m
In order to find the time taken for the second half, we can use the formula:
Time = Distance / Speed
Since the distance remaining is negative, the speed for the second half should be less than 0 m/s in order to still qualify.