1. A cannon mounted on the back of a ship fires a 50.0 kg cannonball in the horizontal direction at a speed of 150 m/s. If the cannon and ship to which it is firmly attached have a mass of 4.00 x 103 kg and are initially at rest, what is the speed of the ship just after shooting the cannon. Ignore water resistance.

2. An 80.0-kg astronaut is floating at rest at a distance of 10.0 m from a spaceship when she runs out of oxygen and fuel to power her back to the spaceship. She removes her oxygen tank (3.0 kg) and flings it into space away from the ship with a speed of 15 m/s. At what speed does she recoil toward the spaceship?
3. A 2.10 x 103-lb sports car travelling east at 20.0 mi/h has a head-on collision with a 4.00 x 103-lb station wagon travelling west at 30.0 mi/h. If the vehicles remain locked together, what is their final velocity?
4. An 80.0=g arrow moving at 80.0 m/s hits and embeds in a 10.0-kg block resting on ice. Use the conservation of momentum principle to determine the speed of the block and arrow just after the collision.

1 answer

1. In this problem, we can use the conservation of momentum principle. Initially, the momentum of the system (cannon, ship, and cannonball) is zero because everything is at rest. After the cannon is fired, the momentum of the cannonball and the recoiling ship should still add up to zero. So:

m_cannonball * v_cannonball = - m_ship * v_ship

where m_cannonball and m_ship are the masses of the cannonball and the ship (including the cannon), respectively, and v_cannonball and v_ship are their respective velocities after the cannon is fired. We want to find v_ship. Plugging in the given numbers:

(50.0 kg)(150 m/s) = - (4.00 x 10^3 kg) * v_ship

Solve for v_ship:

v_ship = - (50.0 kg)(150 m/s) / (4.00 x 10^3 kg) = -18.75 / 4 = -4.69 m/s

Since we have a negative sign in our answer, this means the ship is moving in the opposite direction of the fired cannonball. So the speed of the ship just after shooting the cannon is 4.69 m/s.

2. In this problem, we can again use the conservation of momentum principle. Initially, the momentum of the astronaut and her oxygen tank is zero because they are both at rest. After she throws the tank, the momentum of the astronaut and the thrown tank should still add up to zero. So:

m_tank * v_tank = - m_astronaut * v_astronaut

We want to find v_astronaut. Plugging in the given numbers:

(3.0 kg)(15 m/s) = - (80.0 kg) * v_astronaut

Solve for v_astronaut:

v_astronaut = - (3.0 kg)(15 m/s) / (80.0 kg) = -0.5625 m/s

Since we have a negative sign in our answer, this means the astronaut is moving in the opposite direction of the thrown tank, which is towards the spaceship. So the speed at which she recoils toward the spaceship is 0.5625 m/s.

3. To solve this problem we first need to convert the speeds from miles per hour to meters per second:

1 mi = 1609 m
1 hr = 3600 s

20.0 mi/h * (1609 m/mi) / (3600 s/hr) = 8.94 m/s for the sports car
30.0 mi/h * (1609 m/mi) / (3600 s/hr) = 13.4 m/s for the station wagon

Next, convert the weights from pounds to kilograms:

1 lb = 0.4536 kg

2.10 x 10^3 lb * 0.4536 kg/lb = 953 kg for the sports car
4.00 x 10^3 lb * 0.4536 kg/lb = 1814 kg for the station wagon

Now we can use the conservation of momentum principle:

p_initial = p_final
m1 * v1 + m2 * v2 = (m1 + m2) * v_final

where m1 and m2 are the masses of the sports car, and station wagon, respectively, and v1 and v2, are their respective initial velocities. Plugging in the numbers:

(953 kg)(8.94 m/s) + (1814 kg)(-13.4 m/s) = (953 kg + 1814 kg) * v_final

Solve for v_final:

v_final = [(953 kg)(8.94 m/s) + (1814 kg)(-13.4 m/s)] / (953 kg + 1814 kg) = -6.26 m/s

Since we have a negative sign in our answer, this means the final velocity of the vehicles is in the direction of the station wagon's initial velocity, which is westward. So their final velocity is 6.26 m/s westward.

4. To solve this problem, we can use the conservation of momentum principle:

p_initial = p_final
m_arrow * v_arrow + m_block * v_block = (m_arrow + m_block) * v_final

where m_arrow and m_block are the masses of the arrow and the block, respectively, and v_arrow and v_block are their respective initial velocities (v_block is initially at rest, so its velocity is 0). We want to find v_final. First, convert the mass of the arrow from grams to kilograms:

80.0 g = 80.0 / 1000 = 0.080 kg

Now, plug in the numbers:

(0.080 kg)(80.0 m/s) + (10.0 kg)(0 m/s) = (0.080 kg + 10.0 kg) * v_final

Solve for v_final:

v_final = (0.080 kg)(80.0 m/s) / (0.080 kg + 10.0 kg) = 0.639 m/s

So the speed of the block and arrow just after the collision is 0.639 m/s.