Question

A .035-kg bullet is fired vertically at 180 m/s into a .15-kg baseball that is initially at rest. How high does the combined bullet and baseball rise after the collicion, assuming the bullet embeds itself in the ball? Answer in meters.

Answer 1

initial momentum = .035*180 = 6.3 kg m/s
new mass = .035+.15 = .185 kg
new momentum = old momentum
6.3 = .185 v
v = 34.05 m/s
Ke = (1/2) m v^2 = (1/2)(.185)(34.05)^2
= 107.3 Joules
m g h = 107.3
h = 59.1