Question

A tennis ball and a bowling ball are both rolled down a bowling lane. If the

balls are rolling in the same direction at the same speed, which of the
following is true?
A. The balls have the same momentum because they have equal
velocities.
B. The tennis ball has greater momentum because its mass is less
than the mass of the bowling ball.
C. The balls have no momentum because they have equal velocities,
D. The bowling ball has greater momentum because its mass is
greater than the mass of the tennis ball.

Answer 1

D. The bowling ball has greater momentum because its mass is

greater than the mass of the tennis ball.

Step-by-step explanation:

The momentum of a body is defined as the product of mass and velocity. That is;

p = mv

This implies that the momentum of a body depends both on its mass and velocity respectively.

The question clearly states that the tennis ball and the bowling ball have the same speed and are rolling in the same direction. However, the bowling ball has a larger mass compared to the tennis ball hence it possesses a greater momentum than the tennis ball.