Question

A sailboat was floating along downstream at 20 m/s (a positive direction). A wind came along and started blowing it back upstream at 10 m/s (since this is a negative direction should that velocity be positive or negative?). If it took 3 seconds for the wind to change its direction, what is the acceleration provided by the wind?

Answer 1

The acceleration provided by the wind on the sailboat is -10 m/s², with the negative sign indicating the direction of the acceleration is upstream, opposite to the initial downstream direction of the boat.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the acceleration provided by the wind acting on a sailboat, we can use the formula for acceleration, which is defined as the change in velocity divided by the time over which the change occurs. In this case, the sailboat initially moves downstream at a velocity of 20 m/s, and the wind changes its velocity to 10 m/s in the upstream or opposite direction. It is important to note that acceleration is a vector, which means it has both magnitude and direction. Therefore, when considering the direction, the final velocity of the boat should be taken as -10 m/s since it is in the opposite direction of the initial velocity.

The acceleration a can be calculated as:

a = (final velocity - initial velocity) / time

a = (-10 m/s - 20 m/s) / 3 s

a = (-30 m/s) / 3 s

a = -10 m/s2

The negative sign indicates that the acceleration is in the opposite direction to the initial motion of the sailboat, meaning upstream. Thus, the acceleration provided by the wind is -10 m/s2.