A train is brought to rest in a distance of 513 m using a constant acceleration of 1.0 m/s2. What was the velocity of the train when the acceleration first began?

1 answer

To find the initial velocity of the train when it starts to decelerate to a stop, we can use the kinematic equation:

\[ v^2 = u^2 + 2a s \]

where:

  • \( v \) is the final velocity (0 m/s, since the train comes to rest),
  • \( u \) is the initial velocity (the value we want to find),
  • \( a \) is the acceleration (which will be negative since it's deceleration, so \( a = -1.0 , \text{m/s}^2 \)),
  • \( s \) is the distance over which the deceleration occurs (513 m).

Substituting the known values into the equation:

\[ 0 = u^2 + 2(-1.0)(513) \]

This simplifies to:

\[ 0 = u^2 - 1026 \]

Rearranging gives:

\[ u^2 = 1026 \]

Taking the square root of both sides:

\[ u = \sqrt{1026} \]

Calculating that gives:

\[ u \approx 32.01 , \text{m/s} \]

Therefore, the initial velocity of the train when the acceleration first began was approximately 32.01 m/s.