A gadget of mass 17.85 kg floats in space
without motion. Because of some internal
malfunction, the gadget violently breaks up into 3 fragments flying away from each other.
The first fragment has mass m1 = 4.12 kg
and speed v1 = 3.57 m/s while the second
fragment has mass m2 = 8.02 kg and speed
v2 = 6.03 m/s. The angle between the velocity vectors ~v1 and ~v2 is θ12 = 95
◦
What is the speed v3 of the third fragment?
Answer in units of m/s
1 answer
resolve the two momentum vectors 1 and 2, then the momentum for piece there is equal and oopposite to that, and you can solve for v3