The same motor is used in rockets with different masses. The rockets have different accelerations. According to Newton’s second law, how is acceleration expected to change as the rocket mass increases? (1 point)

Responses

There are no changes in acceleration, as it would depend on the amount of force.
There are no changes in acceleration, as it would depend on the amount of force.

As rocket mass increases, acceleration decreases.
As rocket mass increases, acceleration decreases.

Acceleration cannot be predicted based on changes in mass.
Acceleration cannot be predicted based on changes in mass.

As rocket mass increases, acceleration increases.

1 answer

According to Newton's second law, specifically the formula \( F = ma \) (where \( F \) is force, \( m \) is mass, and \( a \) is acceleration), the acceleration of an object is inversely proportional to its mass when the force applied is constant.

Therefore, if the same motor is used in rockets with different masses and the thrust (force) produced by the motor remains constant, as the mass of the rocket increases, the acceleration will decrease.

The correct response is:

As rocket mass increases, acceleration decreases.