Question

A 2,000-kilogram railroad car moving at 5 m/sec to the east collides with a 6,000-kilogram railroad car moving at -3 m/sec to the west. What is the total momentum of the cars before the collision?

Answer 1

The total momentum of the two railroad cars before the collision is -8,000 kg·m/s to the east, calculated by adding the individual momenta of each car.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question asked relates to the concept of conservation of momentum in physics. In this scenario, we have two railroad cars with different masses and velocities colliding. The total momentum before the collision can be found by calculating the momentum of each car and then adding them together, taking into account their directions. Momentum is calculated as the product of mass and velocity.

For the first car: Momentum = mass × velocity = 2,000 kg × 5 m/s (east) = 10,000 kg·m/s (east).

For the second car: Momentum = mass × velocity = 6,000 kg × (-3 m/s) (west) = -18,000 kg·m/s (east).

The total momentum before the collision is found by adding these together: Total momentum = 10,000 kg·m/s + (-18,000 kg·m/s) = -8,000 kg·m/s (east).