Question

A car of mass 998 kilograms moving in the positive y–axis at a speed of

20 meters/second collides on ice with another car of mass 1,200 kilograms moving in the negative x direction with a speed of 17 meters/second. After the collision, the cars stick and move together. What is the total momentum in the x direction before the collision?

Answer 1

The total momentum should come out to be 2.0 x 10^4 kilogram meters/second

Answer 2

Momentum in X direction = 20400 kg m/s

Step-by-step explanation:

As we know that there is no external force on this system of two cars

so here the momentum of two cars will remains conserved always

So here we can say that initial total momentum of two cars in Y direction is given as

`P_y = mv_y`

`P_y = 998 (20) = 19960 kg m/s`

Now for X direction total momentum is given as

`P_x = mv_x`

`P_x = 1200(17) = 20400 kg m/s`

so here its momentum in x direction will always remains the same and its final momentum in x direction is given as

`P_x = 20400 kg m/s`