76.3k views
2 votes
At a popular rock-climbing site in Yosemite National Park, a randomly selected

1 Answer

8 votes

Final answer:

The boulder will be going approximately 69.7 m/s when it strikes the ground. A tourist at the bottom will have approximately 100.5 m to get out of the way after hearing the sound of the rock breaking loose.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the speed at which the boulder will be going when it strikes the ground, we can use the equation for free fall:

vf = √(2gh)

where vf is the final velocity, g is the acceleration due to gravity (approximately 9.8 m/s^2), and h is the height of the cliff (250 m in this case).

Substituting the given values into the equation, we get:

vf = √(2 * 9.8 * 250) = ≈ 69.7 m/s

Therefore, the boulder will be going approximately 69.7 m/s when it strikes the ground.

To determine the time a tourist at the bottom will have to get out of the way after hearing the sound of the rock breaking loose, we can use the speed of sound:

d = v * t

where d is the distance, v is the speed of sound (335 m/s), and t is the time.

Assuming a reaction time of 0.300 s, we can calculate the distance:

d = 335 * 0.300 = ≈ 100.5 m

Therefore, a tourist at the bottom will have approximately 100.5 m to get out of the way after hearing the sound of the rock breaking loose.

User Justin Whitney
by
8.1k points
Welcome to QAmmunity.org, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of our community.