A car heading north collides at an intersection with a truck heading east.If they lock together and travel at 28 m/s at 46° north of east just after the collision,how fast was the car initially traveling? Assume that the two vehicles have the same mass.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The momentum of the system is conserved. The car's initial velocity can be found using vector components. The northward component of the final velocity (28 m/s * sin(46°)) equals the car's initial velocity, which calculates to approximately 20 m/s.

A Car Heading North Collides at an Intersection with a Truck